On the vast blue sea, the Jonin leader of Team 7 stood against the ship's cabin, teaching his students a new skill.
"Begin to gather your chakra and direct it to the soles of your feet," Kakashi Hatake explained as he walked up the cabin wall, step by step. "Try to stand on the wall and walk up. This is the first step of chakra control."
"Like this?"
Naruto Uzumaki focused his mind. He glanced at the nearby mast and, imitating his teacher, walked straight up it and then back down as if it were solid ground.
Sasuke Uchiha was speechless.
Sakura Haruno was speechless.
My teammate suddenly became a genius, they both thought. This is a little hard to get used to!
Even Kakashi's eyelid couldn't help but twitch. "Naruto, have you done this kind of training before?"
"I think I tried it while training on my own," Naruto said, shaking his head, then nodding. Ever since the Nine-Tails' chakra had stopped interfering, this kind of control had become simple for him.
Kakashi rubbed his chin. "Hmm, what about water-walking training?"
"I should be able to do that too, right?"
Naruto looked at the boundless sea and jumped down confidently. The chakra in his body flowed instinctively to the soles of his feet, allowing him to stand steadily on the water's surface. For him, it was as natural as breathing.
Sasuke Uchiha clenched his fists, ready to jump into the sea himself, but Kakashi stopped him. "Sasuke, you try walking on the mast first. And Sakura, you practice your chakra control on the ship's deck."
Now that they were at sea, teaching the three of them chakra control was essential. It was a precaution in case they had to fight on the water. If pursuers attacked, they would at least have a chance to escape.
Kakashi had originally expected Naruto to be the worst one. The Uzumaki clan was naturally endowed with immense chakra, and with the Nine-Tails sealed inside him, mastering fine control should have been incredibly difficult.
But in the end, Naruto was the first to master it, which was a huge relief for Kakashi. With Sasuke's and Sakura's talent, they would surely be able to walk on water soon. He didn't have to worry about anyone holding the team back.
Kakashi watched Sasuke and Sakura practice on the cabin and mast before looking back at Naruto, who was strolling on the sea. The Jonin leader jumped down and landed next to the blond ninja. "Hey, Naruto, what made you decide to train your chakra control?"
Naruto smiled, putting on a generous act. "If I said I hadn't trained at all, Sasuke would feel inferior, right?"
Kakashi stared at him.
Sounds like he's very considerate of team harmony, he thought dryly.
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On their third day at sea, while Team 7 was practicing their water walking, a large ship appeared on the horizon. A few ninjas suddenly leaped from its deck. They landed skillfully on the sea's surface and rushed toward Team 7's position.
As they got closer, Naruto saw the masks on their faces. They were the same style as Haku's, marked with the Hidden Mist Village's symbol. The difference was, these were the real deal—the Mist Village's official hunter-nin unit.
"Oh, you're ninjas from Konoha? Excuse me, have you seen the person in this drawing?" one of the ninjas asked, pulling out a wanted poster. It showed a shark-faced man with small eyes. Below the drawing was the name: Kisame Hoshigaki.
Naruto and Sasuke each took a step forward, protectively shielding Sakura behind them. They glanced at the poster and calmly shook their heads.
The ninja then took out another piece of paper. "Then have you seen this ninja?"
It was a portrait of Zabuza Momochi.
The two boys froze for a moment and looked at each other.
Why are you looking at me? they both thought. Hurry up and answer so we can send them away!
Their coordination was, in its own way, perfect. They were so afraid of saying the wrong thing that their shared hesitation created immediate suspicion.
The Mist ninja looked at them, his voice turning sinister. "This man is a rogue ninja we are hunting. Have you seen him, or not?"
"Sir, there's no need to ask!" another hunter-nin cut in. "Let's just capture them. With some strict interrogation, we'll get the answers we want!"
"Won't that cause a war with Konoha?" a third ninja asked nervously.
"Idiot! When did our village and Konoha ever sign a formal peace treaty? We've always been in a state of war!"
Just as the hunter-nin unit was disagreeing, another ninja in blue clothes jumped down from their ship, followed by his own squad. From his attire and the guards beside him, it was clear his status was far from simple.
The newcomer had blue-gray hair and wore an eyepatch over one eye. He walked toward Team 7 with a steady, mature posture.
"Lord Ao!"
"Lord Ao, how should we deal with these Konoha brats?"
"Lord Ao, should we take them back to the ship?"
The Mist ninja, respectfully addressed as Lord Ao, stood before Team 7. The veins around his exposed eye bulged as he stared at Naruto. "Hmph! Of course we're taking them!" he declared. "Even if we can't catch those two traitors, Kisame Hoshigaki and Zabuza Momochi, capturing Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is more than enough to report back to the village!"
"Nine-Tails… Jinchuriki?"
Several Mist ninjas took a few steps back in horror. Their impressions of Jinchuriki were by no means friendly.
Hearing the one-eyed ninja's words, Sasuke pushed Naruto behind him. "Naruto, Sakura, don't hesitate," he said in a low voice. "Get back to the ship immediately!"
The one-eyed ninja couldn't help but smile. "Brat, trying to escape our pursuit at sea? You're underestimating us Mist ninjas a bit too much, aren't you?"
Originally, Ao's mission was to hunt down Zabuza and Kisame and retrieve their swords to rebuild the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. But instead, he had stumbled upon the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. A perfectly sealed one, at that.
Right now, the Mist Village was in desperate need of a Jinchuriki, a fact they dared not let outsiders know. Now that this opportunity had fallen into their laps, how could they possibly let such a big fish go?
Just as Ao was about to make a move, a voice called out. "Hey, if you want to lay a hand on my subordinate, you should at least ask for my opinion first, right?"
Kakashi sat leisurely on the bow of the boat. He casually lifted his ninja headband, revealing the eye he always kept hidden.
"The Sharingan… Kakashi!" The one-eyed Mist ninja was stunned for a moment, then looked at Kakashi with a sneer. "If it were Shisui Uchiha's Sharingan, we might need to retreat. But if it's just 'Kakashi of the Sharingan'..."
Although Ao didn't say anything more, the contempt on his face was clear. An outsider with a transplanted Sharingan was not someone he felt the need to retreat from. After all, his own dōjutsu wasn't weak.
In fact, it was the perfect counter to Sharingan genjutsu.
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Bonus:
Ao: Heh, Kakashi, what's there to be proud of about transplanting someone else's eyes?
Kakashi: Whatever, I won't insult you. Next speaker, please!
Obito: Um, Kakashi… I want my eyes back. Is that possible?
Kakashi: Shut up. Next!
Madara Uchiha: I transplanted my brother's eyes. So what? Anyone on the first floor have a problem with that?
Nagato: So what if I transplanted the eyes from upstairs?