The two Demon Brothers didn't know much.
The only valuable information Kakashi extracted was confirmation that their employer was indeed Gato, and that Gato had hired other, far stronger shinobi beyond them.
Aside from that, nothing else could be gleaned. The lack of intelligence was disappointing, and it forced Kakashi to silently adjust his estimation of the mission's danger level.
Things were already far beyond a C-rank assignment.
"It seems that's all we'll get," Kakashi murmured, lowering his hand from their foreheads. "Alright, you two can begin—but don't force yourselves. Killing for the first time isn't easy. You need to grow into it."
Menma and Sasuke both nodded, their faces composed—but that composure trembled faintly beneath the surface.
Even in a world built on war and shadows, the first kill always left a scar.
If a person could kill without a flicker of hesitation, then that person's heart was already a battlefield.
Menma's breath slowed. His fingers quivered slightly around the kunai in his grasp.
He wasn't just any boy—but even after living a second life, he had never truly taken one before.
He had been an ordinary student once… someone who never even harmed a chicken.
Now, his blade would pierce a man's heart.
Fear flickered—but it wasn't weakness. It was human.
He knew this moment mattered. A shinobi's hesitation could mean death. In real combat, mercy or indecision would only invite a blade to your own throat.
He could no longer cling to an idealized notion of strength.
'This is the path I chose,' Menma thought, exhaling.
He stepped forward. His kunai gleamed under the dim forest light.
His right hand trembled faintly—but there was no hesitation in his eyes.
He drove the blade into the chest of the first Mist-nin.
"Pfft—" The sound of steel meeting flesh echoed sharply.
Blood spattered across the mossy ground as the Demon Brother twitched once, life draining from his eyes. His body stiffened, then fell limp against the earth.
At almost the same instant, Sasuke moved. His kunai slashed clean across the throat of the second brother—a precise, practiced motion.
Blood sprayed briefly before silence swallowed the forest again.
For a moment, the two boys stared at one another.
The faint smell of iron lingered in the air between them.
Neither spoke. There was nothing to say.
Kakashi watched quietly from behind, his single visible eye heavy with understanding.
He'd seen this countless times—young shinobi taking their first steps into the darker truths of their world.
This was no different from his own past.
He remembered too well how peace had softened Konoha's new generation. Genin who'd grown up without ever tasting fear—those were the ones who froze and died on the field.
But Menma and Sasuke… they wouldn't crumble. Even through their trembling hands, Kakashi could sense it: their resolve was genuine.
He exhaled. "Well done. Let's go back."
Menma and Sasuke both nodded wordlessly.
Before leaving, Kakashi formed a single hand seal. "Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu."
Small flames burst from his palm, catching on the fallen corpses. The fire spread quickly, devouring the Demon Brothers until only ash remained, carried away by the wind.
It took barely ten minutes—interrogation, execution, disposal.
When they returned, Naruto and Sakura looked up immediately.
The smell of blood hit them first.
Naruto stiffened, his eyes widening. Sakura paled, taking a half-step back.
Something about Menma and Sasuke had changed. It wasn't visible, but it was there—an invisible weight in the way they walked, in the silence that clung to them.
Even Tazuna felt it.
He stared at the two twelve-year-olds with disbelief. "Twelve… they're only twelve…" he muttered under his breath.
For the first time, he truly understood what a shinobi was.
"Alright," Kakashi said quietly, his voice steady. "Let's move."
The group of six resumed their journey toward the Land of Waves.
The mood was nothing like when they'd first left Konoha. The air now carried a quiet heaviness.
Naruto, usually the loudest of them all, walked silently. Sakura, too, was pale and thoughtful.
Only Menma and Sasuke seemed calm—but that calm was something different now.
Something colder.
Menma glanced at Naruto walking beside him.
His face remained unreadable, but deep inside, his heart had already solidified.
'From this moment on… I can only rely on myself.'
The road stretched ahead through the mist, and Team 7 walked on—one step further away from innocence, and one step closer to the darkness that defined the shinobi world.