Fifteen Narutos grinned wildly.
One cracked his knuckles.
Another stretched.
A third pointed dramatically.
"GET HIM BOYS!"
The clones scattered instantly.
Some sprinted forward.
Others leapt into the trees.
The Shinobi Codex chimed.
Skill Activated
Tree Walking – LVL 2
Naruto's feet stuck to the bark as he ran straight up a nearby tree trunk.
Sakura blinked.
"…When did he learn that?"
One Naruto clone jumped branch-to-branch above the battlefield.
Another sprinted upside down across a leaning tree.
Zabuza's voice echoed from the mist.
"Annoying brat."
Suddenly—
CLANG
Steel exploded through the fog.
The real battle erupted nearby.
Kakashi Hatake and Zabuza Momochi collided in the center of the road.
Their blades clashed so fast they blurred.
Water sprayed everywhere.
Kakashi ducked a massive swing of the Executioner's Blade.
Countered with a kunai slash.
Zabuza twisted aside.
His sword carved a trench through the dirt road.
Naruto stopped mid-branch.
"…Holy crap."
Sasuke stared intently.
His eyes followed the movements but barely kept up.
"They're…"
Sakura finished quietly.
"…Too fast."
Another shockwave rippled across the clearing as the two jonin collided again.
CRACK
A tree split apart from the force of Zabuza's swing.
Naruto whistled.
"Okay maybe we don't jump in there."
Still—
He grinned.
"But I can still be annoying."
Three clones dropped from the trees above Zabuza.
"SUPRISE!"
Zabuza swung his blade lazily.
WHOOSH
All three clones popped into smoke instantly.
POOFPOOFPOOF
Naruto cackled from another branch.
"Missed me!"
Another clone threw a kunai.
Zabuza tilted his head slightly.
The weapon flew past harmlessly.
"…You're like mosquitoes."
But Naruto's distraction gave Kakashi an opening.
Kakashi formed a quick hand sign.
Water surged around his feet.
Zabuza smirked.
"Too slow."
His hands blurred.
"Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu."
SPLASH
A massive sphere of water engulfed Kakashi instantly.
The jutsu snapped shut around him.
Zabuza's arm extended into the sphere holding Kakashi trapped inside.
Kakashi froze mid-movement.
The water prison held him completely.
Sakura gasped.
"Kakashi-sensei!"
Zabuza chuckled darkly.
"Well that was easier than expected."
He turned his head slightly.
"You brats should run."
A second Zabuza formed beside him.
Another water clone.
Sasuke's eyes narrowed.
"So the real one maintains the prison…"
The clone lifted the Executioner's Blade.
"…while the clone kills us."
Sakura stepped back.
Her voice trembled slightly.
"…We can't fight someone like this."
The clone swung once.
The sword cleaved a tree clean in half.
Sakura's face went pale.
Sasuke clenched his fists.
Meanwhile—
High in the trees—
Naruto crouched on a branch.
His eyes locked onto Zabuza.
The Shinobi Codex flickered.
Skill Activated
Inspect – LVL 1
Data compiling…
Target Identified:
Zabuza Momochi
Affiliation: Former Shinobi of Kirigakure
Title: Demon of the Hidden Mist
Status: Rogue Ninja (Missing-nin)
Notable History:
• Former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen• Attempted coup within Kirigakure• Known for silent assassination techniques
Threat Assessment:
Extremely Dangerous
*Ping*
Skill Level Up - Inspect LVL 2 (3/20)
Naruto blinked.
"…Damn."
Below him—
The water clone stepped forward.
The massive blade dragged across the dirt.
"Time to die."
Sasuke stepped forward slowly.
"…Naruto."
Naruto dropped beside him.
"Yeah?"
Sasuke spoke quietly.
"We free Kakashi."
Naruto grinned.
"Way ahead of you. Yo shark teeth, you ready to lose just like how you failed your little coup?"
Zabuza clenched his teeth, "Dont talk about things you know nothing about brat"
He reached into his pouch and pulled out a massive windmill shuriken.
Sakura blinked.
"…Where did you even get that?"
Naruto winked.
"Lottery system."
Tossing it to his teammate, Sasuke grabbed it immediately.
Without hesitation—
He hurled the giant shuriken straight toward Zabuza
The blade spun violently through the mist.
Zabuza glanced at it.
Then casually jumped over it.
But the shadow beneath the spinning weapon suddenly shifted—
POOF
A hidden Naruto appeared mid-air.
"NOW!"
Naruto hurled a pair of kunai directly at Zabuza's outstretched arm.
The arm maintaining the water prison.
CLANG
The blades struck his forearm.
Zabuza jerked back instinctively—
The water sphere collapsed instantly.
SPLASH
Kakashi Hatake dropped free.
His hands were already forming seals.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
A massive dragon of water erupted from the river behind them.
Zabuza's eyes widened.
"…So fast."
His hands mirrored Kakashi's movements instantly.
"Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!"
Another dragon rose to meet the first.
The two titanic constructs collided mid-air.
CRASH
Water exploded across the forest.
The shockwave flattened nearby trees.
Kakashi's Sharingan spun.
"I can see through you."
Zabuza's body ragdolled throughout the clearing, smashing into tree after tree, eventually braced against a tree lifelessly.
Then—
FWIP
Something flashed through the air.
Needles.
Thin metal senbon.
They struck Zabuza's neck with perfect precision.
The swordsman stiffened, seemingly dead.
Everyone froze.
A masked figure stood on a nearby tree branch.
Graceful.
Silent.
The hunter-nin lowered their arm.
"I apologize."
"This criminal has been pursued by Kirigakure for some time."
The stranger bowed politely.
Kakashi studied the body carefully.
"He is dead. I will now transport his body to Kirigakure for disposal."
The Shinobi Codex pulsed quietly.
Boss Encounter Completed
Enemy: Zabuza Momochi
Result: Survived
Rewards Granted:
+3 Strength
+2 Agility
+2 Endurance
+10 Shadow Clone Jutsu, Skill level up to 3!
+9 Shadow Shuriken Jutsu
+5 Tree Walking
Bonus Rewards:
• 1 Skill Experience Pack
• 1 Free Lottery Roll
• +15 System Points
Naruto exhaled loudly.
"…That guy was terrifying."
Sasuke stared at the fallen swordsman silently.
Sakura slowly relaxed.
But Kakashi kept his eye on the masked figure as he lifted Zabuza's body.
Something about the situation…
Didn't feel finished.