"Why are you after this Gato guy?" Kisame asked, walking beside the blonde brat.
"Because we need money," Naruto replied. "Gato is disgusting... let's just say I want him dead and I'll take the loot. I brought you with me because there's someone who will be there."
He and Kisame were heading toward the Land of Waves—Zabuza Momochi and Haku.
Naruto knew those two would be there; he remembered the date, and the system had told him about the missions. That's when he saw the Wave mission. He didn't hesitate to choose it, then went to Konan, telling her he would be going to the Land of Waves and wanted Kisame to join him.
She didn't question why, instead she called Kisame, and the two of them immediately set out.
Kisame was curious about what the blond was planning. He had no real bond with him, though he had sparred with the kid a few times, and he had to admit—he kind of liked the brat. Not a bad sparring partner. Not a chatterbox either; he was the type to get straight to the point.
"Can I at least have a clue who this person is?"
"You'll find out soon. I promise you won't be disappointed, Kisame."
"Well, you've never disappointed me once, brat." That wasn't a lie.
-------
Meanwhile, Kakashi watched his team doing tree-climbing chakra training. After their battle with Zabuza, Kakashi was exhausted from using the Sharingan and injured from the fight. On top of that, a realization had struck him once he noticed Zabuza wasn't actually dead. That so-called hunter-nin hadn't killed him—it was clear that person was working with Zabuza.
He told the others, who panicked—except Sai. Sai never showed emotions.
At the moment, Sasuke was struggling with the chakra tree exercise, while Sakura and Sai had already completed it. Sai, of course, already knew the exercise; he was a Root agent.
Kakashi left Sasuke to continue with the tree training, told Sai to keep an eye on him, and took Sakura to a small pond, where he instructed her to practice water-walking.
He sat down on a rock, set his crutch aside, and sighed. This was the worst day ever. Not only had he let his guard down, but the mission had nearly failed, and he had gotten his butt kicked. Embarrassing.
I'm not sure anymore if we'll be able to get out of here in one piece… Sai doesn't care as long as the mission succeeds and Sasuke is protected. He doesn't care about Sakura, but since I ordered him to be nice and work as part of the team… he's improved a little, Kakashi thought.
Sai had opened up slightly. He still wore fake smiles and spoke nonchalantly, but from what Kakashi could tell, Sai simply couldn't judge when to say something kind—or when to shut up.
I wonder what Naruto is doing, Kakashi thought, glancing toward the pond where Sakura was struggling with water-walking. Jiraiya-sama said he hasn't found anything about him… like he vanished… Where could he be?
Sometimes, Kakashi felt like a failure.
He wanted to bring Naruto back home, but… did Naruto even want to come back? No. He definitely wouldn't.
"Kakashi-sensei!!"
Kakashi looked toward the pond, where he saw Sakura walking across the water. "Ah, good job, Sakura."
Sakura smiled wide, happy she had managed to complete the exercise. "What's next, sensei?"
Kakashi grabbed his crutch and stood up. "Now we'll work on your stamina. You'll do ten laps around the forest, twenty push-ups, and twenty squats."
"Sensei—"
"No buts. Get to work, Sakura!"
Sakura bit her lip, then nodded and began running to start her ten laps. She knew she was going to be drenched in sweat at this rate, but she wanted to grow stronger. She couldn't afford to fall behind. No—she would get stronger. With determination, Sakura swore she would finish the laps and complete every exercise she was told to do.
Kakashi walked back to where he had left Sasuke and Sai. Time to see if the mighty Uchiha had managed to finish his training.
———
The moment Kisame and Naruto reached their destination, Naruto created shadow clones and sent them to attack the large castle-like building where he knew Gato was.
"Huh? This is too easy. Those clones of yours work wonders," Kisame said, watching the shadow clones cut down the goons and clear out the building. "How long are they gonna take?"
Leaning against a tree, Naruto replied calmly, "Not too long."
Kisame glanced around. "Mm, is it me… or is it getting—" He tightened his grip on Samehada. "Good old mist… Haa… Is this what you meant, Naruto? Someone from my village?"
Naruto didn't answer directly. His sensory ability had already picked up the chakra. It was Haku, no doubt. "Wait, don't fight. Give me a second…" he told him. "We need this person to lead us to his partner. These two are important figures who will help our goal."
"Oh?" Kisame said, sensing where the person was hiding. To him, it felt weak. "All right, have it your way, brat."
Naruto straightened up. "My clones are done cleaning. Kisame, why don't you head inside and grab the loot? Sorry if I sound bossy, but I want to get out of here without trouble… After all, we can't announce Akatsuki to everyone yet."
"Mmh, fair enough. Heh, I still don't get why I listen to you… I guess you cook very well."
"Ah, yes. I made you spicy tofu."
"Deal."
With that, Kisame headed inside the building, ignoring the dead bodies along the way. Once Naruto saw him leave, he turned toward the direction where Haku was hiding. The mist wasn't too thick, and with Naruto's sensory skills, it posed no problem.
"Haku! I know you're there. Please, I need to speak with Zabuza," Naruto called, pulling out a scroll. "Here, I have this message written on the scroll. Give it to him." He tossed it toward Haku's direction.
Haku caught the scroll and stared at it. Who was this guy? How did he know his name—or Zabuza-sama's, for that matter?
"Hurry up, Haku!" Naruto pressed. "I really need an answer from Zabuza! Kisame and I will be waiting for him!"
Haku bit his lip. He had been sent here to deal with the intruder—
"Don't worry about Gato! He's dead!" Naruto interrupted, clearly understanding his hesitation. "Zabuza will get money if he comes… We don't want to fight. Also, tell him about Kisame Hoshigaki… he knows him."
Finally, Haku made his move and left the area. He needed to return to Zabuza and deliver the scroll. Besides, Haku wasn't foolish enough to attack the blond; he could tell this person was very strong.
Sensing him leave, Naruto let out a sigh of relief. Of course, he had known Haku wouldn't engage in battle, but he was glad he had listened.
Zabuza and Haku were important for what Naruto was planning. He wasn't here just to save them. The system chimed in his head, but Naruto ignored it and walked inside the building to help Kisame with the loot.
There were other bases that needed to be cleared before leaving the area. The Land of Waves wouldn't suffer again.