Captain Kakashi declared, "I'm going to rest now, you take over leading the team!"
Ethan's first reaction upon hearing this was: Is he messing with me? Kakashi-sensei, where's your integrity?
He immediately figured this guy's integrity had probably already crumbled for the most part, and whatever was left was reserved for more important situations, which clearly didn't include this one.
But... at least tell me whether I should kill or keep Haku?
However, Kakashi didn't give any instructions at all. After saying that one sentence, he simply tilted his head and played dead.
"..."
Ethan rubbed the hilt of his sword. He could see cold sweat beading on Kakashi's forehead, but he still didn't draw his sword to strike him. Instead, he silently signaled Naruto and Sasuke to each carry one person, lifting both Kakashi and Haku.
"Huh? Why me? This person... she should be a girl, right?"
Sasuke didn't say anything, but Naruto looked at Haku, who was lying motionless on the ground. No matter how he looked, Haku was a beautiful girl. Wouldn't it be awkward for him to carry her?
"No, he's a guy."
Ethan was sure. As a god, he could still tell male from female.
"Huh? A guy?"
Naruto looked at Haku again, then at Ethan, and finally at Haruno Sakura... and then got punched by Sakura. (Sakura: What do you mean by that look?)
With a swollen cheek, Naruto obediently carried Haku on his back. It wasn't until halfway there that he realized.
"Huh? Why aren't you helping?"
"Cough, cough. I used too much energy in the previous battle. I don't feel so good..."
Of course, no one could understand what Ethan was really saying. The three of them, including Sasuke, had only now realized that Ethan actually had this side to him. They had never noticed it at school.
Why does he seem a bit like Kakashi-sensei?
You only just temporarily joined Team 7, so why are you picking up habits so quickly? And why is it only the bad ones?
They all complained silently in their hearts, but no one actually said anything. After just finishing a major battle, even though Naruto and Sasuke still had plenty of stamina, they were mentally exhausted.
Even Sakura, who had been standing on the sidelines the whole time, felt tired now. They just wanted to find a place to rest.
Fortunately, they weren't far from Tazuna's house, and they soon arrived.
After settling the unconscious (?) Kakashi, the genin started racking their brains over what to do with Haku.
"How about we just kill him?"
"Then why did you make me go through all that trouble to carry him back!"
"I was originally thinking that when Kakashi-sensei woke up, he might interrogate him to get some intel on the enemy. But now it looks like he doesn't know when he'll be waking up."
"Ah... it doesn't seem right to kill someone who can't fight back, does it?"
"..."
Sasuke remained silent. Naruto and Sakura felt that since the enemy had lost the ability to resist, there didn't seem to be a need to kill him. Fortunately, Kakashi finally (?) woke up and gave instructions: detain him first, and he would question him later about Zabuza's situation, as they would definitely have to face him again.
He would use this time to properly recover, and Naruto and the others also needed to train and strengthen themselves. Zabuza was injured too, and wouldn't be able to attack again soon. They needed to make good use of this time.
Actually, the most logical approach at this point would have been for Ethan, who had considerable strength, to lead the still intact fighting force of Naruto and Sasuke to directly raid Gato.
No matter how rich or notorious Gato was, he was just an ordinary person.
As for his subordinates? Zabuza was no longer able to fight, and the rest were mostly just armed thugs, with a few rogue ninja at best. No matter how many of them there were, they couldn't pose a real threat to Ethan and the others. In fact, this would've been a perfect opportunity for Naruto and the others to learn how real ninja carry out missions.
If Naruto and Sasuke were just regular genin, Kakashi would have undoubtedly made such arrangements.
But they weren't, which led to this rather unusual situation.
Kakashi's timely awakening now was probably because he was afraid Ethan, this overly mature youth, would make the 'correct' decision and directly wipe out Gato's base.
Considering the later plans, he had to find a way to exclude Ethan.
Ethan was too strong. With him and Kakashi together, it would be like a jonin teaming up with another genius ninja. That kind of team-up was meant for high-difficulty missions and shouldn't appear here.
Leaving Haku behind provided a good reason to reasonably hold Ethan back. Haku's strength wasn't low, and someone strong had to guard him. No one was more suitable than Ethan.
So in the following days, Ethan's task became very simple: guard Haku and don't let him escape.
Besides recovering, Kakashi resumed his role as a teacher, focusing on training Sasuke and Naruto. They had already learned tree climbing, and since they were in the Land of Waves, they began practicing water walking.
Though basic skills, Sasuke genuinely felt his strength improving. Now, releasing Fire Style jutsu was much easier than before, and controlling his chakra had become more natural.
He gradually began to believe what Ethan had said earlier, and seriously considered trying the method Ethan had suggested after returning to the Hidden Leaf Village. Compared to figuring everything out by himself, it seemed like a much more efficient training method.
Compared to the two boys, Sakura still lacked the motivation to work hard, nor did she have any clear goals. Like a typical girl, she was quite content with her current situation, especially after being able to quickly complete both tree climbing and water walking. Maybe she felt that her current strength was good enough for now?
Ethan didn't offer her any guidance. A Sakura who hadn't yet realized the importance of becoming stronger wouldn't be able to accept what he had to say. Only after going through the hardships of the Chunin Exams would she truly understand.
"Speaking of which... the Chunin Exams... I think you need to form teams, right?"
As Kakashi's body gradually recovered, the following developments began to unfold before Ethan's eyes.
The only change was that this time, when they went to the bridge, Ethan was left behind to "guard the house".
So while Kakashi and Zabuza clashed on the bridge, Ethan sat across from Haku, watching him.
"Aren't you worried about your teammates?"
"I'm not worried at all."
Haku watched Ethan shake his head and wave his hand, his expression serious. He could tell the other party genuinely wasn't worried.
"Lord Zabuza won't make the same mistake twice."
Haku, who had been quietly recuperating and unable to do anything, had already figured out how Kakashi had defeated Zabuza last time. And it was even more unlikely that Zabuza himself, who was much stronger than him, hadn't thought of it.
The method Kakashi used before wouldn't work again. In that case, Kakashi might lose to Zabuza, not to mention those young genin.
"You underestimate Hatake Kakashi too much."
Kakashi often fought to a draw, not because he couldn't win, but because he had developed a bad habit of conserving energy. He usually used various tactics to test the opponent's true strength, then beat them with just enough force.
If Kakashi went all out from the start and used his ultimate moves, there were only a few in the major villages who could withstand him. Even among the Akatsuki, who were said to all be Kage-level, not everyone could hold up against such a Kakashi.
Now that Kakashi had figured out Zabuza's strength, if he got a little serious, Zabuza might not even survive one of his moves.
In the original story, if Haku hadn't jumped in and blocked Kakashi's Lightning Blade, Zabuza would have died then and there.
Now Haku was sitting right here, so it was clear that Zabuza was doomed.
As for Gato? He was just a clown.
Did he think he could do whatever he wanted just because he had money? In the world of ninja, only those with strength could act as they pleased.
When the Hidden Leaf Village didn't care about him, he could act arrogant. But once he caught their attention, his death was inevitable. It could even serve as training for the new generation and help cultivate the Sixth and Seventh Hokage.
"Is that so?"
Haku suddenly fell silent, as if he had no more questions. But Ethan suddenly said something that made him break out in a cold sweat.
"I know you plan to run off while I deal with those thugs, but I advise you not to waste your energy."
"..."
Seeing that Haku didn't respond, Ethan shook his head, turned, and went to deal with the thugs sent by Gato, preventing them from disturbing Tazuna's family.
After handling those thugs, Ethan didn't return immediately. He used the Body Flicker Technique to follow after Haku, who had tried to escape, and chased him toward the bridge.
By the time the two arrived one after the other, the battle was already over.
Zabuza was critically injured, barely hanging on. Gato's death wish succeeded, and his insulting words after Zabuza's death angered the just-arrived Haku, who used Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals to kill Gato and a group of his subordinates.
At this moment, Zabuza, who only had one breath left, saw Haku. Perhaps realizing his life was at its end, Zabuza didn't speak to Haku the way he usually did.
"Since you're alive, then don't die... Live well... live for my share too..."
These words didn't sound like something the man known as the "Demon" would say. Ethan looked at this final moment, which differed from the original story, and felt that this outcome wasn't bad.
"As expected, messing with the plot feels good for a while... constantly messing with it feels good all the time..."
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)