After Team 13 arrives and settles in to what would be their home for the next few weeks, Fugaku speaks to his team, telling them Zabuza would probably need at least a week to fully recover and they would need to be prepared because the next time they meet, he won't be alone.
"I'd also like to apologize to all of you for what I did. I allowed my emotions to cloud my judgement, putting you all in danger. I promised you I wouldn't let you die, but the truth is had it not been for Naruto, you would have been killed," Fugaku said in a solemn tone.
His apology wasn't only due to the clouded judgement he made but also towards Naruto, who had to step in to fight against Zabuza even though it was supposed to be his responsibility.
This is also the reason why he didn't reprimand Naruto about attacking him after he broke free from the water sphere. Fugaku believes that the attack he received at that moment wasn't only to warn Fugaku not to intervene in the fight but also a wake-up call about the critical mistake he made during the battle.
Hinata and Satsuki quickly forgive him since they understand his position. This is especially true for Satsuki, who felt anger within her after what Zabuza said about their clan.
Naruto, meanwhile, remains indifferent about it.
Though the mention of his name attracts his teammates' attention, clearly Fugaku is using him to divert anyone's attention or to extract information from him.
Naruto was right; everyone was trying to interrogate him concerning the power he displayed during the encounter with Zabuza.
"Training," Naruto responds calmly.
Everyone knows there is more to it than this, of course, and continues to interrogate him, but they quickly realize Naruto isn't going to give anything away.
It was clear to everyone that Naruto isn't going to share more besides what he already said.
Satsuki and Hinata exchanged glances at each other, and they saw the shock hidden in their eyes. They are still unable to imagine that Naruto is still hiding his strength.
When they thought that they already had an accurate measure of his prowess, he quickly proved them wrong.
The question started to appear in their mind at this moment. How strong is Naruto?
Yet no one can answer their question aside from Naruto himself, which clearly isn't going to happen anytime soon.
Team 13 for the few days that follow this particular meeting go about guarding Tazuna. They work on a rotational schedule of guarding for half a day while staying behind and training before switching. The day passes by uneventfully until one night...
"There's no point, you know," Inari suddenly said, attracting everyone's attention on the table.
"You're all going to die," Inari added with a matter-of-fact voice.
The original sound of eating mixed with chatter that once filled the room is now replaced with heavy silence as they stared at Inari.
Inari didn't back down after seeing everyone staring at him and instead stared back at everyone with his eyes burning with intense hatred.
Team 13 has already been briefed on how Gato's oppressive rule affects everyone and what happened to those people who opposed his rule. Every person Gato's henchmen found that was opposed to Gato was openly killed for anyone to see.
As it turned out, Inari's father, Kaiza, who was considered a hero in the village, had tried to stand up against the crime lord. Gato, without hesitation, immediately arrested Kaiza and publicly tortured him for days before executing him, sending everyone a deadly message.
This ordeal had heavily traumatized Inari and had made him the way he is now. Pessimistic and hateful.
Fugaku displays no outward reaction about the boy's outburst, as if it didn't happen in the first place. Hinata's eyes dart around the room nervously, seeing the mood turn to the worst.
Tazuna and Tsunami become sad after hearing Inari and unconsciously turn their heads downwards.
"I'm sorry I didn't hear you clearly. Could you say it once again?" Satsuki said while staring at Inari coldly.
"I said you're all going to die, you idiot! It doesn't matter how hard you train or how much you fight. It's hopeless. You're no match for Gato and his men," Inari responds angrily while staring at Satsuki.
"And I suppose you are?" Satsuki asks, her voice laced with sarcasm.
"Well, why don't you tell me about that? Because from what I've seen, nothing has been done for this land since Kaiza died," Satsuki continues.
"Don't you dare talk about Kaiza!" Inari angrily yelled out loud. "Who do you think you are anyway?! Kaiza was my hero, and he was ripped away from me. You have no idea what that's like, living in that ninja village of yours all your life. You know nothing about suffering," Inari continued shouting.
A dark look appeared on Satsuki's face, and terrible memories of that night started to appear, which made Satsuki glare at Inari in anger, and just as she was about to respond, she suddenly felt a heavy pressure. In fact everyone does.
"You are all too noisy," Naruto said calmly. "I don't care about your crybaby backstory, but disturbing my dinner wasn't a smart choice you made."
Everyone stared at Naruto in shock. Fugaku intently stared at Naruto, ready to stop the latter for whatever he was about to do.
Tazuna, Tsunami, and Inari felt like someone was trying to choke them to death as they were unable to take a breath, staring at Naruto.
"If you disturb me once again, I don't mind ending your insignificant life," Naruto finishes coldly before silently eating his dinner.
After a few moments the pressure that everyone felt disappeared instantly, but everyone's eyes were still glued to Naruto, who had been quietly eating his dinner.
"...You shouldn't have done that, Naruto," Hinata said after gathering her courage.
Naruto's eyes turn to Hinata, waiting for the latter's explanation about what she just said.
"He's just angry about his situation and is innocent. You shouldn't blame him for the disturbance, and don't take his action personally," Hinata added.
"Innocent?" Naruto raised one of his eyebrows. "Bold word to use, Hinata."
Hinata looks at Naruto in confusion. From her perspective, Inari and the people in this village are innocents and suffering thanks to the oppressive rules of Gato and his henchmen.
"No matter which world, as long as one lives in this world, they would be intertwined in karma. How can anyone be innocent? Humans slaughter pigs; aren't the pigs innocent? In nature there is only the food chain. There is no innocent in this world. Anyone can live. Anyone can die. But nobody is innocent," Naruto coldly said.
Fugaku's eyes narrowed for a moment after hearing Naruto. Fugaku was unable to think of any reason why Naruto reached such a conclusion, and this really made him question how Naruto had grown throughout these years.
Hinata frowned after hearing Naruto. She clearly disagrees with his view about the innocent but is unable to think of any response to Naruto's statement.
Tazuna and Tsunami secretly glance at each other before their eyes land on Naruto. They are unable to imagine the life he lives if Naruto had such a cold view on the world.
It was clear to the father and daughter duo that Naruto wasn't normal like his teammates, especially the way he viewed the world.
After a few moments, Naruto finished eating his dinner and left the house without even speaking, yet his action was followed by everyone's eyes.
"Fugaku-sensei... Who is Naruto?" Hinata asks in a low voice. She was unable to understand Naruto as the time passed by. His action and behavior are completely different when they are still at the academy.
"...I'd be lying if I said I knew the answer to that, Hinata," Fugaku said after a few moments of silence.
Satsuki, meanwhile, stared at Naruto for a moment before her attention focused on Inari, who also stood up and returned back to his own room, not bothering to finish his meal.
The next day both Satsuki and Hinata wake up before the sun rises on the horizon. This day their schedule wasn't to guard Tazuna while he works building the bridge but to train themselves while Naruto and Fugaku are the ones guarding the elderly man.
After making short preparations, the two girls quickly made their way towards the specific spots of the forest where they chose to train after they arrived at the Land of Waves.
The place is so quiet and secluded that they weren't afraid of alarming anyone and focused their attention on training and improving themselves.
The moment the sun rises from the horizon, at the same time that Satsuki and Hinata finish their sparring and take a small break, they notice someone walking towards their direction.
The person was a beautiful girl who was around the same age as them. She was wearing a pink kimono with a flower design on it with a white sash around her waist.
She is currently wearing a basket on one arm and looking at the surroundings, searching for something.