Sakura was still scolding Naruto when a sharp whooshing sound tore through the air.
Whirr—whirr—whirr!
A massive blade spun toward them, cutting through the wind like thunder.
Kakashi's head snapped up. His single visible eye narrowed in alarm.
"Everyone, down!" he shouted.
The team instinctively dove to the ground—
and a split second later, the huge sword sliced through the air above them, embedding itself deep into a tree trunk.
The next moment, a tall figure landed silently atop the sword's handle, his back turned toward them.
A headband gleamed on his brow — the symbol of the Hidden Mist.
For a heartbeat, the forest went silent.
Then Kakashi stepped forward, his expression darkening.
"...Momochi Zabuza. The Demon of the Hidden Mist."
His tone carried weight — and even Naruto and Sakura could feel it.
"This," Kakashi muttered, "just got complicated."
Naruto, however, saw none of that.
All he saw was an enemy — and an opportunity.
He drew his kunai and charged forward with a shout.
"Finally! My turn! I'm not losing to Sasuke or Arata this time!"
But Kakashi's arm shot out, blocking him.
"Don't," he said coldly. "You'll only get in the way. He's not someone you can fight."
Naruto frowned. "Come on, sensei! I'm not the same as before!"
Kakashi's brow furrowed.
Zabuza was no ordinary opponent — an elite jōnin. Even a single mistake could mean death.
The man standing on the sword turned his head slightly, a dangerous smirk crossing his face.
"Well, well… I didn't expect you to be here," Zabuza said, his voice low and rough.
"The Copy Ninja… Kakashi Hatake."
At that name, even Sasuke froze.
"...Sharingan?" he muttered.
"Wait — he has a Sharingan?"
He couldn't believe it.
After the Uchiha clan's destruction, Sasuke thought he was the only one left who could wield those eyes.
Beside him, Sakura blinked. "Sharingan? What's that supposed to be?"
Naruto turned too. "Yeah, Kakashi-sensei! What's a Sharingan?"
Kakashi didn't answer, but Sasuke did, his voice tight.
"It's a special eye technique — it can see through ninjutsu, genjutsu, taijutsu... anything."
Zabuza chuckled darkly. "That's right. The Sharingan can even copy an opponent's jutsu."
He leaned forward on the sword, grinning.
"When I was still in the Mist, your name was in every ninja handbook. The Copy Ninja Kakashi — the man who's copied over a thousand techniques. A dangerous one indeed."
Sakura and Naruto stared at their teacher in awe.
"So… that's real?" Sakura whispered. "He's really that strong?"
Naruto's eyes were wide. "Over a thousand jutsu?! That's insane!"
But Sasuke didn't care about numbers.
His mind was spinning around one single thought — Kakashi has a Sharingan.
That was supposed to be his clan's power.
Only the Uchiha were born with those eyes.
Could Kakashi… be one of them?
Kakashi's expression hardened.
"This won't be easy," he murmured. "Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura — form up around Tazuna. Protect him at all costs."
He turned his head slightly. "Arata. You and I will handle this together."
Arata stepped up beside him, his eyes calm, his hand already gripping a kunai.
Sasuke didn't like it, but he knew Kakashi was right.
He, Naruto, and Sakura fell into a protective formation around Tazuna, weapons ready.
Zabuza's eyes shifted toward Arata.
"So you trust this kid that much, huh? What is he, your student?"
Kakashi said nothing. Instead, he slowly lifted his headband.
Sasuke's breath caught.
As the cloth slid upward, it revealed a crimson eye — three tomoe swirling within it like blades.
"Three tomoe…!" Sasuke whispered, stunned.
"That's a fully awakened Sharingan! Even among the Uchiha, only a few ever reached that stage… Could he really be one of us?"
Sakura and Naruto could only stare, struck silent.
The air around Kakashi seemed to shift, thick with power.
Even without understanding what the Sharingan was, they could feel it — a suffocating, predatory aura that raised the hair on their necks.
Naruto's stomach twisted.
That eye… it felt wrong. Familiar, somehow — like something deep inside him recoiled from it.
Zabuza smirked.
"So it's true. The Sharingan in the flesh."
He shifted his stance. "But you think I'd fight you on your terms, Copy Ninja?"
He raised one hand — and mist began to rise from the ground, thick and heavy.
"Hidden Mist Technique."
The world turned white.
The temperature dropped as the fog enveloped the forest, swallowing sight and sound alike.
Sakura gasped. "W-What's happening?"
Kakashi's voice cut through the haze.
"This is the Hidden Mist Village's assassination technique. A silent killing style — stay alert and don't move."
But Arata's eyes were already half-closed, calm as still water.
Even as the mist grew denser, he could feel Zabuza's chakra moving through it — sharp, cold, and heavy, like steel scraping against stone.
Kakashi frowned.
"Don't stray too far, Arata. He'll come for the weakest first."
But Arata didn't answer. His gaze was fixed ahead.
Kakashi's stomach tightened.
"Arata—?"
Then, with a burst of chakra, he flared his energy outward.
BOOM!
A surge of pressure tore through the mist, scattering it like smoke in a storm.
Arata's silhouette appeared again, completely unharmed.
Kakashi exhaled in relief. "You could've answered, you know."
Arata gave a small smile. "I thought you could sense me."
Kakashi chuckled weakly, shaking his head. "You really are something else."
Then, his tone hardened again. "Stay sharp. He's an elite jōnin. One mistake could mean death."
As the mist cleared slightly, the sheer killing intent from both men filled the air.
It was suffocating.
Sasuke's knuckles went white around his kunai.
This… this is what power feels like?
The oppressive aura pressed against his chest like a mountain.
Naruto's breath came in short bursts.
Sakura was trembling, her knees barely holding her up.
And then—
Sasuke's hand began to move on its own.
His face went pale, eyes wide.
The killing intent had twisted his instincts — turned fear into madness.
His kunai hovered at his stomach, the tip trembling against his skin.
Kakashi's and Zabuza's killing aura had driven him to the edge —
the line between life and death.
Even Naruto stood frozen, his body refusing to obey.
For the first time, they all felt it — the crushing reality of what it meant to be a ninja.
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