"Master Zabuza?" Haku stared at him, confused.
Zabuza slowly withdrew his hand.
He looked at Haku with a liberating gaze.
"Haku... that's enough. You are not a tool. You never were. My life has been full of sin; reaching this point is already a gift. But you are different. You still have a long life ahead of you."
"Master Zabuza!" Haku whispered again, but his tone had changed.
"Do you know, Haku? In the Village of the Bloody Mist, there is only darkness. My life as a ninja was the same. But on that snowy night, I saw a light. I didn't save you-you saved me."
Zabuza smiled.
Even behind the bandages, the sincerity was clear.
He had forgotten how many years it had been since he'd smiled like that.
In a low chuckle, his gaze sharpened.
Before anyone could react, he aimed the kunai at his own throat and lunged downward.
The speed was unbelievable.
Even Noah blinked in surprise, let alone Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi.
They froze.
"No!" Haku screamed, but it was too late.
The kunai flew, aimed at Zabuza's throat-but a blade flashed.
Zabuza's entire arm was severed.
Momentum carried the kunai, but Noah kicked him, shifting his body.
The kunai grazed his neck-not fatal, but Zabuza was in a wretched state.
Clutching the stump, Zabuza roared, fury and weakness mixed, "What are you trying to do?! Keep humiliating us?!"
Noah looked embarrassed as he picked up the severed arm and approached.
"Actually, I didn't expect you to be so impulsive. But I think you did the right thing."
"What do you mean?" Zabuza, in despair, barely resisted.
Noah held the arm against the stump, infusing it with energy to heal it.
Zabuza let out a cold laugh, glancing at Kakashi.
"Is this how you train kids in the Leaf? All that power, not a single brain cell."
"Well..." Kakashi felt awkward.
He turned to Noah. "Noah, it's no use. A severed limb... even Lady Tsunade couldn't fix it."
Severed limbs were nearly impossible to heal.
Even in Naruto's era, it wasn't solved-look at Sasuke, still one-armed.
Naruto had lost an arm too, only recovered with a special body.
"If we don't try, how will we know?" Noah said nonchalantly.
He looked at Zabuza.
"I never intended to humiliate you. I just thought it would be a waste if you died like this."
"What do you mean?" Zabuza felt a strange sensation in his arm, but remained wary.
"You've found something worth protecting; you shouldn't die here." Noah smiled.
"Take Haku and leave. Go wherever you want. Stop these dirty jobs. Help those who need it, and life will seem beautiful."
Zabuza opened his mouth, but no words came.
Noah's words struck his softest spot.
Seeing this calm youth, and the faint golden light in his hands, was dazzling-like dawn breaking through darkness.
"Does someone like me really have the right to live? My hands are stained with blood and sin. I've walked the path of darkness," Zabuza murmured, questioning Noah-or perhaps himself.
Noah thought a moment.
"A ninja once told me every ninja carries sin. No one is truly innocent. But the right to embrace the light cannot be taken away. It depends on your heart."
Zabuza was dazed.
He looked at Haku, then at Noah, who stood up.
The arm was fully reattached.
The feat didn't register in Zabuza's turmoil-though inside, he was screaming.
"We're leaving. I hope next time we meet, you've changed." Noah waved and turned toward Kakashi and the others.
"Of course, I doubt you'll want to see us again."
"That was so cool, Noah!" Naruto couldn't contain himself.
"Every ninja has the right to embrace the light! Noah, that was awesome!"
"Can you be quiet for once?" Noah looked at him like an idiot.
"You've been talking the whole way. Enough."
"Heh, heh!" Naruto rubbed his head sheepishly.
"I can't help it, Noah. That was amazing! And... sorry, I misunderstood you back there. I-"
"Shut up!" Noah smacked his head lightly.
"Silence is the greatest reward you can give me!"
Naruto, whether from the Nine-Tails or sheer energy, buzzed around like a fly.
Even Noah's patience was taxed.
Despite the smack, Naruto grinned-clearly not upset.
Sasuke, however, couldn't stand it.
He whispered "idiot" to himself, while Naruto's chatter turned on him.
Having awakened his eyes and learned a lesson from Noah, Sasuke actually bickered back.
Noah's arm-reattaching feat? Sasuke didn't realize how terrifying it was-he only knew Noah was insanely strong.
Now, he felt he could eventually catch up with his own special eyes.
Kakashi, however, understood just how scary Noah's technique truly was.
He waited for a lull in Naruto's chatter.
"When did you learn medical techniques? Such high-level ones?"
"I didn't. I don't really know how it works." Noah shrugged, tired of hiding.
"I was born with a special type of energy in my body. I can control it, and it has unique effects."
"Special energy? A Bloodline Limit?" Kakashi was stunned.
"What kind of effects? What have you used it for?"
"When I was little, I used it to stick a fish back together after it was cut in half but hadn't died. It fully recovered."
"The old man who raised me scolded me, told me not to show it, or I'd get in trouble."
Kakashi was floored.
A fish... cut in half... recovered?
"Can you show me? Let me feel it."
Noah nodded.
A glimmer of golden power appeared in his hand.
A thick aura of life pressed against Kakashi, tinged with faint majesty.
Kakashi's expression turned solemn.
This power was beyond imagination.
He'd never seen energy so dense with life.
Even Lady Tsunade in her prime didn't possess this.
A thought struck him.
The kid's background was clean-he grew up in the Leaf.
Family records showed they were locals, though details were scarce.
Combined with massive energy reserves and life-giving power at twelve or thirteen, one name flashed in Kakashi's mind: The First Clan (Senju).
Exactly.
The traits fit perfectly.
The First Leader had life-giving energy; the First Clan was known for massive reserves.
Could this kid be a member of the First Clan?
Kakashi's mind raced.
He fell silent.
Noah watched him, amused.
How could he not guess Kakashi was jumping to the wrong conclusion?
But it was for the best.
Noah was tired of holding back.
If Kakashi thought this, he'd get more resources.
And most importantly... Noah could finally start having some fun.