Zabuza's pupils contracted.
"The Fourth… you mean—"
Naruto walked to the edge of the rooftop. He picked up the broken segment of the Executioner's Blade and said calmly,
"The Cursed Seals binding the two of you will wear off in a while. As for the Executioner's Blade—I'm taking it."
"Trust me. This blade rejects its wielder. Carry it back to the Hidden Mist, and you might end up like Jūzō Biwa."
Zabuza stared silently at the broken blade in Naruto's hand. After a long while, his teeth clenched.
"Take it! I'll come reclaim it myself one day!"
Beside him, Haku—still immobilized—became visibly anxious.
"Zabuza-san!"
Naruto unrolled a sealing scroll and chuckled.
"Reclaim it yourself? Zabuza-san, you only dare say that because you know I won't kill you right now. But honestly—you don't have the strength. And even if I don't kill you… do you think I can't kill your subordinate?"
He continued casually,
"And besides—what good is the Executioner's Blade? Other than draining the blood of weaklings to restore stamina, this chunk of rust doesn't do much. Against anyone on your level, it snaps clean in half, just like today. At this point, all it has left is the reputation of being one of the Seven Ninja Swords."
"Didn't Hozuki Mangetsu tell you to choose the Longsword: Stitch?
But you didn't listen. A silent-killing assassin wielding a giant cleaver like a frontline swordsman—did something go wrong with your head after the academy exams?"
Rage burst in Zabuza's eyes.
"You little bastard!"
For once, Haku only opened his mouth without speaking—there was nothing he could say.
Naruto sealed the broken blade into the scroll, then turned around. Lightning gathered violently in his hand, the sharp chirping of electricity making Zabuza's heart tighten. He shot a glance toward Haku.
"What are you planning to do?"
Naruto stepped forward slowly until he stood before Haku.
"You don't seem to understand your position as a prisoner. I'm helping you recognize reality."
Veins bulged on Zabuza's forehead as he struggled desperately, but the Cursed Seal left him powerless.
Haku simply closed his eyes as if accepting an unavoidable fate.
Zabuza roared, eyes bloodshot.
"Damn it! Kill me instead!"
Naruto shook his head.
"Disappointing. I'm not going to kill you."
Then his hand thrust forward. Lightning flashed.
Chzzzt! Craaack!
Fabric tore. Haku could faintly hear Naruto speaking to Zabuza, but the piercing sound of electricity drowned out the words.
When Haku opened his eyes again, the enemy was gone. His gaze shifted to Zabuza—and he froze.
"Zabuza-san… the bandages on your face…"
Zabuza's furious roar exploded:
"You brat! You dare make a fool out of me!?"
A short while later, Naruto and Sasuke had dumped Gatō inside a hidden vault beneath his estate in the Land of Waves' central district. Now, disguised with the Transformation Technique, they headed toward Gatō's second vault on another commercial street.
Sasuke remained silent, though excitement flickered in his eyes. But when they reached the street, his brow furrowed.
Both sides of the road were filled with ragged beggars—many of them just children.
With clear displeasure, Sasuke asked,
"Naruto… why didn't you kill Gatō?"
Naruto replied evenly,
"You already took two hundred million from him, and you still want to kill him? Isn't that a bit much?
Besides, if he dies now, who's going to hand over money next time?"
Sasuke's gaze darkened as he noticed a small group of malnourished children being chased away by a woman with a bamboo stick, like livestock.
As the children huddled in fear against a wall, Sasuke approached. Immediately, they grabbed a dying old beggar and clung to him in terror.
Sasuke's chest tightened. He placed a stack of bills on the ground and walked back to Naruto.
After a few turns down the street, Naruto spoke.
"Feeling better now?"
Sasuke shook his head.
"Not at all."
Naruto gave a soft laugh.
"Good. Then don't feel guilty about what comes next."
Sasuke stiffened.
"What do you mean?"
Naruto stopped walking and stared at him coldly.
"Oh, great philanthropist… use that brain of yours. Think. What kind of place is this? What happens to children under ten if they suddenly show up with money?"
Sasuke's heart dropped.
He spun around and sprinted back.
His speed was immense—yet he was still too late.
The old beggar was dead.
The children lay unconscious, curled on the ground.
Two of them were covered in blood.
Sasuke stared at the scene in horror. Rage surged through him like a broken dam.
Naruto approached quietly. Seeing Sasuke trembling with clenched fists, he shook his head.
"How do you feel now?"
Sasuke inhaled deeply.
"Naruto… can you heal them?"
Naruto knelt beside a convulsing child, then turned and stared directly into Sasuke's eyes.
"And then what? After I heal them, what will you do?"
Sasuke's voice was low and sharp.
"What needs to be done."
Naruto's gaze turned mocking.
"You really are the pampered heir of a great clan."
Sasuke's voice hardened.
"What did you say?"
Naruto didn't answer. Instead, white feathers began drifting down from above—an illusion of considerable scale.
Sasuke tensed.
"A genjutsu this big… what are you doing?"
Naruto ignored him, already healing the first child. When the boy's eyelids fluttered, Naruto finally spoke.
"If not for your naïve, self-satisfied pity—your coins tossed from above—they wouldn't have been beaten.
The old man wouldn't be dead right now."
"You may not have blood on your hands, but that doesn't change the fact that you CAUSED this.
Your so-called 'justice' is nothing more than emotional self-indulgence—an instinct, not a virtue. And it collapses the moment it's challenged."
"You asked what the genjutsu is for. Simple.
Didn't you want to avenge these children?
Then go ahead."
Sasuke's face paled.
"…Avenge them? On who?"
Naruto healed a fourth child, then gently propped him upright.
"Don't pretend to be stupid.
The ones who beat the old beggar to death—the ones who injured these kids—were the other beggars on this street."
"Go.
Kill them all.
Enforce your justice.
Make it real."
Sasuke trembled violently, his head lowering in defeat.
"You knew I'd harm them from the beginning…"
Naruto answered flatly,
"Yes."
Sasuke lifted his head, eyes hollow.
"…I'm sorry. I was stupid."
Naruto rose.
"I thought you'd blame me for not warning you sooner."
Sasuke shook his head.
"I won't make excuses for my mistakes.
But… help me. I want to give these kids something real in return."
Naruto's eyes glinted.
"I've been helping you this whole time.
So tell me—how do you plan to compensate them?"
Sasuke looked at the children Naruto had healed.
"What they need isn't pity. It's the strength to survive.
So I'll teach them ninjutsu.
I'll help them become strong."
(End of Chapter)
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