"I wish I could go to the same place as you."
Those words struck like a hammer, shattering the cold façade Zabuza had worn his entire life.
And with that single sentence, the entire ninja world's long-held image of the Demon of the Hidden Mist collapsed.
It proved something no one wanted to admit:
Even a tool could be cherished.
Even a demon could have someone he wanted to protect. Someone he wanted to follow.
On the actual bridge in the Land of Waves, the real Zabuza's body trembled uncontrollably. He clenched his teeth hard enough to draw blood. Beneath the layers of bandages, his vision blurred with tears he could no longer suppress.
He had lost.
Not to Kakashi.
Not to Naruto.
But to this ranking video that had fallen from the heavens.
It stripped him bare.
It tore open feelings he had locked away so deeply even he feared to touch them.
And it displayed them to the world without mercy.
Haku stood quietly beside him, tears streaming down his face. Yet he made no sound. Gently, almost timidly, he reached out and took Zabuza's hand. The veins on Zabuza's arm were bulging from the strain.
Zabuza froze, but he did not pull away.
Above them, the vision continued.
In the future, after speaking those words, Zabuza turned toward Kakashi with tear-filled eyes.
"Kakashi… lend me a kunai."
His voice was rough, yet steadier than ever before.
Kakashi silently tossed a kunai to him.
Zabuza caught it with his mouth. His blurred, exhausted gaze sharpened once again into something fierce and terrifying.
His target was the smug merchant standing on the far side of the bridge.
"That brat died and saved me a fortune. What a bargain," Gato laughed.
He had no idea he was mocking the one thing Zabuza could not allow anyone to touch.
"Go kill him!" Gato shouted when he saw Zabuza charging. His arrogance only grew as he barked orders at his hired swordsmen.
Zabuza surged forward.
No ninjutsu.
No tricks.
No strategies.
His hands were mangled. His body was at its limit.
All he had left was his ruined body and his iron will to avenge Haku.
The scene turned tragic.
A blade pierced his shoulder.
He did not slow down.
A spear struck through his gut.
Still he pressed forward.
Weapons stabbed into him one after another until his body resembled a walking porcupine made of steel and agony.
Yet every step he took was steady.
Every step was soaked in blood.
The mercenaries panicked. Their courage evaporated, and they scrambled to flee.
Zabuza had only one destination.
He pushed through the scattering crowd and approached Gato, who was shaking uncontrollably.
"Stay back. Stay back, you monster!"
On the real bridge, the living Gato watched his future self driven into a corner. Terror overtook him. He collapsed to the ground, the stench of fear leaking from him.
In the video, Zabuza gave him no room to escape.
He swung his head and slashed Gato's throat with the kunai held between his teeth.
Gato clutched at his neck, eyes wide with disbelief, and collapsed into a pool of blood.
Revenge was complete.
At that moment, Zabuza's strength finally gave out. He fell backward.
"Kakashi… I have a request."
Kakashi caught him before he hit the ground.
"Take me… to Haku."
Kakashi looked at the blood-soaked warrior in his arms and nodded.
Step by step, he carried Zabuza toward the small, silent boy lying motionless on the frozen bridge.
Snow began to fall.
It was not winter. Yet snow fell.
As if the world itself wished to offer a final farewell to these two tragic souls.
"It's snowing."
"Haku… are you crying?"
Zabuza's quiet monologue echoed across every heart watching.
Kakashi gently laid him beside Haku.
Zabuza turned toward the boy's peaceful face. Haku looked as though he had simply drifted into a gentle sleep.
Zabuza tried to lift his arm to touch him, but his broken body refused to obey. His hand fell halfway.
So instead, he leaned forward and pressed his cheek gently against Haku's cold face.
"We were always together…"
"So in the end, I want to stay by your side."
"If I could…"
"I really wish I could go to the same place as you."
The moment he finished speaking, Zabuza's head fell forward.
The image froze.
In a storm of falling snowflakes, the two figures rested in one another's arms, forever silent.
A tide of grief swept across the entire ninja world.
Countless people wept.
They were not mourning a rogue ninja and a tool.
They were mourning a bond powerful enough to last beyond death.
The heavenly screen slowly dimmed.
At the center, a line of large glowing text appeared.
"The top ten rankings have concluded."
…Inside Jiang Chen's small apartment in the Leaf Village.
He stared at the refreshed interface on his system panel and let out a long exhale.
"Intense emotional response detected."
"Impact Points +18888."
"Sorrow Points +35666."
"Appreciation Points +9999."
"Beginner mission completed with excess performance. Calculating rewards."
"Rewards granted: 50000 points. Primary Exchange Shop unlocked."
Jiang Chen's heart raced as he read each line.
He had succeeded.
His opening move was perfect.
When the video ended, the sky returned to its usual calm.
Yet the cold air on the bridge in the Land of Waves and the heavy expressions on every face proved what they witnessed was no illusion.
Silence.
A silence so complete that even a falling needle would have sounded loud.
Everyone was still trapped inside the sorrowful story laid bare before them.
Naruto was sobbing uncontrollably. He looked at the bodies of Haku and Zabuza, and there was no hatred left in his eyes. Only sadness. Only sympathy.
Kakashi let out a long breath.
A ninja is just a tool.
The creed he had once accepted without question… faltered for the first time.
At the riverbank, Gato recovered from the shock of believing he had died. He scrambled to his feet, overwhelmed by humiliation and fear.
"An illusion. It was all an illusion!" he shouted wildly. "What are you idiots doing? Attack! Kill them! Kill Zabuza Momochi!"
His thugs exchanged looks.
Not one of them moved.
The impact of the video still weighed heavily on them. The image of Zabuza cutting through an army with his body alone was burned into their minds.
Then, during this tense standstill…
The real Zabuza finally moved.
Slowly, deliberately, he turned around.
His eyes were glistening with tears, yet colder and clearer than ever.
His target was no longer Kakashi. No longer Team Seven.
He stepped past everyone and fixed his gaze on the trembling merchant at the riverbank.
"You…"
Gato choked on his words.
Because Zabuza Momochi was walking toward him, the massive executioner blade resting on his shoulder.
His killing intent was stronger than ever before.