"Dead."
As chakra fluctuations suddenly erupted, the puddles of water on the ground surged upward. Two masked figures burst out, each wearing a Kirigakure forehead protector—a deep slash carved across the metal plate, marking them as rogue ninja.
They appeared instantly, one on each side of Kakashi.
With a sharp click, the mechanisms on their arms snapped open. Barbed chains shot forward like vipers, wrapping tightly around Kakashi's body.
With a violent pull—
Krrrk!
Kakashi's body was torn apart.
The sight stunned the three genin.
Sakura froze in terror. Naruto's mind went blank. Even Sasuke, though shaken, barely managed to steady himself.
"Sensei Kakashi!" Naruto shouted in panic.
At that exact moment, a chilling presence appeared behind him.
Naruto's body stiffened.
Just as the two attackers were about to strike, Sasuke reacted.
He hurled a kunai and shuriken in rapid succession, pinning the iron chain linking the two enemies to a nearby tree. Then, leaping forward, he landed squarely on the mechanisms attached to their arms.
Before they could react—
Bang! Bang!
Sasuke twisted his body mid-air and kicked both of them hard in the face.
"Damn brat!" the two cursed angrily.
Ripping off the damaged chain mechanisms, they immediately charged toward Dazna, who stood frozen not far away.
"Boom!"
Suddenly—
Kakashi reappeared.
In a flash, he seized both attackers by their arm sockets, one in each hand. Their bodies went limp almost instantly. From their slack expressions, it was clear—they were already unconscious.
"S-Sensei Kakashi…?" Naruto stammered, staring in disbelief.
He glanced at the torn body from earlier, only to realize it was nothing more than shattered wood fragments scattered across the ground.
"Tch… always stealing the spotlight," Sasuke muttered quietly, looking away.
"Naruto," Kakashi said calmly, tossing the two defeated ninja aside, "sorry I didn't save you immediately."
He glanced sideways at Naruto.
"Fortunately, nothing happened. I didn't expect you to be so scared that you couldn't move."
The words struck Naruto hard.
Kakashi's intent was obvious—he wanted to push Naruto. As his teacher, Kakashi naturally kept an eye on him, but in Konoha, Naruto's situation had never been good. Kakashi couldn't openly interfere, especially with Danzo lurking in the shadows.
If not for the Third Hokage secretly watching over Naruto, he might have already died.
"Damn it… it's that look again."
Naruto clenched his teeth. Kakashi's mocking gaze stabbed straight into his heart, filling him with frustration and shame.
Without hesitation, Naruto dug his fingers into his own palm, letting the pain burn itself into his mind.
I won't run away anymore.
With that resolve, Kakashi turned his attention to Dazna.
"This mission was classified as C-rank," he said coldly. "Ninja shouldn't appear at this level. At most, it should involve bandits."
Under Kakashi's questioning, the truth finally came out.
In recent years, a wealthy merchant named Gato had arrived in the Land of Waves. Using hired thugs and mercenaries, he gradually seized control of the country.
The Land of Waves was surrounded by sea. Trade required boats to travel between nearby islands—but because of the harsh geography and Gato's interference, merchants from other islands refused to come.
To break free, the people pooled their money to build a bridge that would connect the islands.
That bridge was Dazna's project.
But once Gato arrived, construction was repeatedly sabotaged.
By buying goods at dirt-cheap prices and selling them elsewhere for massive profit, Gato monopolized the economy. If the bridge were completed, his entire scheme would collapse.
That was why—
He wanted Dazna dead.
To build the bridge, the villagers of the Land of Waves pooled together all the money they had to purchase materials. There was no surplus left to commission missions above C-rank. Because of this, Dazna deliberately deceived Konohagakure, using a C-rank commission to hire ninja for what was clearly a B-rank—or higher—mission.
After understanding the full situation, and following a brief discussion and vote, Team 7, led by Hatake Kakashi, still decided to continue with the mission.
Akatsuki Base — Amegakure
"Nagato, why did you call me here just to meddle in my relationship with Konan, you bastard?"
Ash walked into Nagato's room with clear annoyance. The rain outside Amegakure drummed endlessly, filling the dim headquarters with a cold, damp atmosphere.
"You and Konan have been together for nearly ten years," Nagato replied calmly. "What difference would one less moment make?"
He paused, then continued more seriously.
"I called you here because of something important. After years of secretly organizing bounty missions, we've gathered a considerable amount of funds… but there's still a shortfall."
"About two billion."
Hearing Ash's irritated tone, Nagato could only feel helpless.
Since Ash and Konan had crossed that final boundary, the two of them rarely carried out missions anymore. They spent most of their time together, leaving nearly all organizational affairs to him. If not for White Zetsu's assistance, Nagato would already be buried under work.
Though immensely powerful, Nagato found dealing with finances and logistics far more exhausting than battle.
And now, despite all efforts, the organization was still missing two billion.
"Two billion…" Ash frowned.
Memories surfaced—of a certain monopolist from the original timeline.
"Alright," he said after a moment. "There might be a way. Wait for my news."
Nagato nodded, rubbing his temples.
"I'll leave it to you. With the current bounty missions, it's impossible to make up that amount quickly."
As Ash left the room, he mulled over recent intelligence.
"According to the information from Sakata Masao, the storyline has already begun," he muttered to himself.
"That means Gato should be in the Land of Waves right now."
...
TN:
⚡ Pa-treon-com/LordMerlin (Support me! 😊)