Chapter 65: Chapter 65:- The Assassin of the Mist
Bang....!!
Everyone heard the sound of flesh piercing and the screams of two men.
Hearing this, Hanabi activated her Byakugan. As soon as she saw where the two daggers went, Hanabi started vomiting.
Meanwhile, Sakura and Sarada still had no idea what just happened. Everything just happened too fast.
For a moment, everyone became silent. Everyone had different kinds of reactions on their faces.
Kakashi was stunned by the fact that Naruto literally created crystal daggers and killed the two Shinobi within just a few seconds.
'Since when did he make Crystal?' Kakashi was in shock. He had never seen anything like this.
'Is this a new type of kekkei genkai?' Kakashi asked himself.
'I will ask Naruto about this when we are alone.' Kakashi made up his mind.
'This young man's strength is definitely above the level of a normal Genin.' Even though Tazuna was not a Shinobi, he knew just how strong Genin rank shinobi were.
Realizing that Naruto's strength might be on the level of Chunin or even higher, Tazuna suddenly became very hopeful about the future. Now, there was one Jonin and one Chunin.
"Hana-chan, are you okay?" Naruto started patting her back, hoping this would finally calm her down.
No matter how big of a genius she was, Hanabi had never taken a life before. This was the first time she had seen something like this.
Huff...!! Huff...!!!
Sakura was still in shock. In her mind, she kept asking what just happened. Everything happened so fast.
Meanwhile, seeing that Hanabi was alright, Sarada went beyond the bushes. She was shocked to see the corpse of rogue Mist Shinobi. A sharp dagger had pierced his head.
'I wasn't even able to sense them coming. Yet, Naruto reacted swiftly and was able to bring these two down within just a few seconds.' Sarada finally understood the gap between her and Naruto.
'It's like, he already has experience at doing these kind of things.' Sarada thought to herself.
Later, when Sakura saw the corpses, although she was scared, her reaction was much better than Hanabi. She did not vomit. But it is going to take a while for Sakura and Hanabi to get adjusted to this side life. Life wasn't always peaceful.
Everyday people were dying somewhere on this planet.
If they hesitate to take someone's life, then they were going to be killed.
"Let's continue....!!" Kakashi said while breaking the heavy silence.
The team continued their journey. For the next 30 minutes no one said anything. The atmosphere was kind of heavy. Especially Sakura and Hanabi looked like they were digesting everything that just happened.
Sarada was doing much better. She had seen far worse things.
"Naruto, how did you even make them?" Sakura was asking about the two crystal daggers.
Sakura asked this question because she was curious and wanted to think about what had happened earlier.
"I don't know. I think as my hair color changed to red, I gained this new kekkei genkai."
"What is it called?" Sarada asked in surprise.
"It's called Crystal Style," Naruto said with a smirk.
Back in his other world, a student of Orochimaru was able to use Crystal Style. She was the only person who could use Crystal Style. Naruto still remembers just how tough challenge she gave to team 7.
"So you're able to create Crystals?" Hanabi asked. She had recovered a little bit.
This conversation certainly helped her not think about what happened earlier.
Crystals are a rare mineral in this world.
"I think. But it consumes more Chakra to make Crystal out of thin air. But it is far easier for me to turn water or something else into crystal." Naruto didn't get time to test out the power and capabilities of his new kekkei genkai.
'Though I have the most Chakra among anyone in the Hidden Leaf. So, Chakra consumption was never a problem for me.' Naruto thought to himself.
"Mr. Tazuna, we need to talk." Kakashi seriously said as he looked at the old man, Tazuna.
"From the beginning of this mission, I have noticed that you have been really cautious. We also didn't hear anything about you being targeted by Shinobi. The content of the request was supposed just to be protection from gangs, thieves, and the like. But this isn't clearly the case here."
"You constantly checked your surroundings. And my squad was attacked by two rogue Mist Shinobi. All of this could mean one thing." Hearing all of this, Tazuna began to sweat.
"You purposely lied about the mission's difficulty to save money, didn't you?"
"Depending upon the danger that we might face, the rank of this mission might increase to B or even A rank."
"The request was supposed to be protection until you finished building your bridge. If our enemies were to be ninjas, the mission would have been estimated as an expensive B rank. I am sure there is a good reason behind this, but being lied to in the request won't do." Kakashi was brutal with his words.
Just the fact that Tazuna decided to be cheap could have resulted in Kakashi losing his squad. It was fortunate that the mist rogue Shinobi that attacked them was weak.
Everyone stared at the old man for an explanation.
Seeing that he had no choice but to speak, the old man nodded his head. "Yes." The old man said with a guilty look.
"This should be beyond the scope of our mission." Kakashi continued.
"What do you think?" Kakashi asked his students.
This was also to see how his students would act in such situations. Depending on how they act, this would help Kakashi better understand the character of his students.
"We will continue this mission." Naruto was the first one to speak, as he knew what difficulties the old man and his family were going through right now.
"Things might get even more dangerous if we continue. You might be strong, but what about your teammates?" Kakashi was testing Naruto's attitude.
"I am strong enough to protect them. Under my watch, nothing will happen to any of them." Naruto seriously said.
Kakashi was very satisfied with Naruto's answer. 'He is truly the son of Sensei and Lady Kushina. He has characteristics of both of them in him.' Kakashi thought in his mind. There was a small smile on the corner of his lips that was hidden under his mask.
"What about you all?" Kakashi asked the rest.
"We also want to continue. I don't want our first mission to end like this." Hanabi replied with a smile.
"Since Naruto-kun said that he would protect me, then I have no fear. Let's continue." Sakura jokingly said to lighten the mood.
"Naruto-kun never mentioned you." Hanabi quickly replied.
Sakura glared at Hanabi. Hanabi also didn't back down. She also did the same.
Sarada just nodded her head. This experience will help her get stronger physically and mentally.
Tazuna was very touched seeing this. "Thank you, everyone." He could only thank everyone.
And so, team 7 continued their journey towards the Land of Wave.
One day later, they had crossed the border of the Land of Fire and reached the waters of the Land of Wave. From there on, they would need to take a boat to reach the other side.
The whole water body was covered in dense fog since it was early in the morning.
The whole team rode a boat to reach the other side. As they reached the midway point, Naruto and others noticed a giant bridge. The bridge was only half constructed till now.
"This bridge is huge....!!" Sakura said loudly as she looked at the bridge.
"Please be quiet. I took this boat under the cover of the fog. I have purposely turned off the engine not to make any noise and now I am rowing by hand." Hearing this, Sakura nodded her head and sat down.
Seeing all of this, Naruto smiled. In his other world, Naruto had done the exact same thing.
The boat slowly moved under the bridge.
"Tazuna-san, I want to ask you something before we arrive at the pier." The old man remained quiet.
"The identity of your assailants and the reason why they are after you. If you don't tell us, then our mission may end when you make landfall.
The old man remained quiet for a few seconds before speaking his mouth. "It appears I have no choice but to tell you."
"No, rather, I would like you to listen."
"As you said, this may be beyond the scope of your mission. Actually, I am being targeted by a terrifying man."
"A terrifying man?"
"Who is it?" Kakashi asked.
"You guys have probably at least heard his name before."
"A shipping magnate by the name of Gato."
"What? You mean the Gato of the Gato company. One of the world's richest man?" Kakashi asked back.
"Yes. On the surface, he's the chief executive of a shipping company, But underneath, he is into drug trafficking. And deals in contraband using gangs and Ninjas. Moreover, he runs a despicable business, ruthlessly taking over nations and enterprises."
"It was about one year ago when that man set his sights on the land of waves. He used his wealth and violence to enter this country. Before anyone knew it, he had taken complete control of the island's maritime transportation and shipping. Having a tight grip on the ocean in an island nation like the Land of the Waves means having control of finance, the government, the people... everything."
"The one thing Gato fears is the completion of the bridge that has been under construction for some time now."
"I see. Since you're building the bridge, you have become a hindrance." Hanabi said.
"Then, those Ninjas from before were Gato's men?" Sakura asked.
"Maybe," Naruto replied. He knew everything but pretended to not know anything.
"But I don't understand. Your opponent is a dangerous one who will even use Ninjas. What made you hide the fact when you were making a request from us?" Kakashi asked.
"The Land of the Wave is a very poor nation, and even the feudal lords have no money. Of course, we ordinary citizens have no money either. We cannot afford to make requests for a B rank or higher rank."
"Well, if you pull off the mission when we land ashore, I will, no doubt, be killed. I killed sometime before I made it home."
"Well, since my students have already decided to help you, I guess we will continue being your bodyguards," Kakashi said after thinking for a while.
"Oh!! I am most grateful!!" Tazuna said with a big smile. This might be the first time they had seen him smiling this sincerely.
Soon, they landed ashore. After saying goodbye to the boat driver, Tazuna took them to his home.
'Next time when they attack, it won't be the Chunin but the elite Jonin.' Kakashi thought in his mind.
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Image of the Land of Waves
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