บท 12: Battle On The Bridge
A/N: Double Release (2/2). If you want another double release get this story to 200 powerstones by next Sunday. This story will only continue if it gets enough support e.g. Powerstones. Also I'd like to get to 10 reviews on this story too, so give some reviews. Goal: 200 Powerstones for double release.
Perched in a tree, Goro observed as Naruto went berserk, landing a powerful punch that shattered Haku's crystal ice mirrors. The chakra radiating from Naruto was menacing, and Goro shuddered, sensing the presence of the Nine-Tails' chakra contaminating the air.
'Haku has lost his will to fight. I can't allow him to regain it. I must finish him, and in turn, Kakashi will be able to finish Zabuza.'
As Haku flew through the air, his mask shattered from the impact of the punch. Goro flickered to Haku's side and delivered a destructive kick, smashing Haku into the ground. Goro mounted over Haku in a way that obscured the mist ninja's face from Naruto's view and plunged his kunai into the boy's neck.
'I got the kill… I need to wait until there's no one around to cut Haku's ear off. I'll wait until the two are being buried.'
Naruto, who had been consumed by rage, paused behind Goro as his anger subsided and the Nine-Tails' chakra receded back into his body.
Goro stood up and moved aside, allowing Naruto to see that the enemy had been killed.
"That's… But that's Haku…" Naruto said in disbelief, dropping to his knees beside the corpse.
At the same moment, Kakashi managed to pierce Zabuza's heart with his Lightning Blade, the sound of birds screeching filling the air as if mourning Haku's death.
"Naruto, where's Sasuke?" Sakura questioned, running over to Naruto. Ino, who had been guarding Tazuna with Sakura and the rest of Team 10, also ran over.
Naruto got back on his feet, unable to meet the two girls' eyes.
"Well?" Ino said, excitement in her voice.
Naruto remained silent. Needing an answer, Sakura's eyes drifted to where the two had been fighting, and her heart sank.
'I can't do this right now, but hypothetically if I were to kill Sasuke, would I get his eyes?'
[Yes, everything that belongs to him would belong to you.]
'Interesting…'
Goro lifted Haku's corpse, slung it over his shoulder, and gave Kakashi a look. Kakashi nodded, pulling his arm out of Zabuza. Goro then slung Zabuza's body over his other shoulder and walked over to his team.
"How're you guys holding up?" Goro asked Shikamaru and Choji.
Shikamaru sighed and replied, "This mission was such a drag. I need a real vacation after this. Also what're these girls making a fuss about?"
'There's no point in telling him, Sasuke's fine afterall.'
Choji nodded in agreement and complained, "Only a feast of meat can bring my energy back…"
Goro laughed, finding his team and their distinct personalities amusing. "I don't know what's up with the girls, I just got here. That being said, hang in there, we're almost done. The hard part is out of the way now."
"That's some confidence you've got," Shikamaru teased.
In the corner of Goro's eye, he spotted a blade sticking out of the ground.
'I'll come back for Zabuza's blade after I've buried him.'
Snapping Goro out of his thoughts was the sight of a crowd of Gato's men appearing in the corner of his eye. In the center of the crowd was Gato himself.
Goro set down Haku and Zabuza, reached into his pouch for a kunai, and shouted to Tazuna, "Get behind me!"
Tazuna rushed behind Goro, leaving the wailing girls behind. Shikamaru and Choji joined Goro, standing beside him with their kunai drawn.
Kakashi, now aware of the new enemies, began weaving hand signs.
'Things have changed. He isn't out of chakra, so he can easily take out these low-rank mercenaries. Everything's going as planned.'
"Get them!" Gato yelled.
The mercenaries rushed toward the Leaf ninja, but it was too late. A water dragon loomed over the mercenaries.
They stopped in their tracks and looked up, then at each other.
"Run!" one of them cried, darting off.
The rest dropped their weapons and fled, but Kakashi wasn't willing to let them escape. The dragon surged toward the crowd, laying waste to Gato's men, including Gato himself, with only a few managing to escape.
"That's the Gato issue sorted," Kakashi muttered, relieved.
Goro faked triumph, punching the air, before lifting Haku and Zabuza up again.
'I'll only be truly happy when I've got their skills.'
"On my way here, I found a good spot for the burial, so I'll head that way. If you need me, I'll be a few hundred meters southeast," Goro informed Kakashi before disappearing.
A few seconds later, Goro arrived at the burial site. He crouched down, cutting an ear off each corpse, and created two clones.
'I've got an idea…'
Goro handed the ears to one of the clones and instructed the other to dig the graves.
'Hopefully, this works…'
[Copying High Chunin and High Jonin. Estimated time to complete the copy: 1 hour and 10 minutes. Beginning copy…]
'That's a huge leap in time… It's fine. I should reach the level of an Elite Jonin when the copy is complete.'
The clone tasked with digging the graves quickly finished its work and stood by. Goro lowered both bodies into the graves and sealed them back up.
"You two will be a great addition to my repertoire of Jutsu," Goro said, placing his hands on his hips.
Turning to the clone holding Haku's and Zabuza's ears, Goro instructed, "Hide somewhere a few meters from this spot. After the time is up, your task is done."
The clone nodded and flickered away.
Goro exhaled and leaned against a tree. He was exhausted from all the meticulous planning but relieved that things had gone according to plan.
In the distance, Naruto was wheezing from all the energy he had exerted chasing after Goro.
Naruto finally reached the burial site and looked down at the two graves, unaware of which one belonged to Haku.
"It's the one on the right," Goro said. Naruto had a melancholic expression. He thanked Goro and then focused on Haku's grave.
Feeling it was best to give Naruto some space, Goro attempted to leave.
"You saw his face, didn't you?" Naruto asked Goro.
'What's he getting at?'
Goro stayed quiet, analyzing Naruto's question. When Naruto didn't hear a response, he looked back at Goro.
"Yeah, I did. Is there something wrong?" Goro asked.
Naruto turned his gaze back to Haku's grave. "You didn't hesitate at all," Naruto said.
"He killed Sasuke," Goro replied, trying to end the conversation, but Naruto wasn't convinced.
"At the time, you didn't know Sasuke was dead. He's fine now, but you didn't know," Naruto countered.
Losing patience with Naruto's questioning, Goro snapped, "I killed those samurai too. Haku was just another one of Gato's men, so he suffered the same fate. What makes Haku's life any more valuable than the rest?"
Naruto, infuriated by Goro's comparison of Haku to Gato's other men, grabbed Goro by the collar, glaring fiercely into his eyes.
"What? You're going to attack a comrade to protect the honor of an enemy? Don't be unreasonable," Goro said, annoyed.
'He's being irrational. He needs to get over it.'
Kakashi appeared between the two, separating Naruto from Goro. "That's enough, you two," Kakashi said sternly.
Pointing his fist at Goro, Naruto declared, "I'll show you that not everyone is plain and simple. There are good people who fall into doing bad things. I'll show you!"
Goro sighed and turned to Kakashi, who gave him an apologetic smile. Uninterested in arguing with Naruto, Goro returned to the bridge.
'The Executioner Blade was somewhere around here…'
Scanning the bridge, Goro spotted Choji holding Zabuza's blade, attempting to swing it around. He managed a few swings before heaving from exhaustion.
"This thing is heavy!" Choji exclaimed, out of breath, as he dropped the blade to the ground.
Goro flickered to the blade, picking it up. "Since it's too heavy for both of you, I'll be taking this as a souvenir, that is, if you both don't mind."
Startled by Goro's sudden return, Shikamaru and Choji quickly regained their composure and waved it off. "I can't even lift it, and Choji can only swing it a few times, so we're not interested," Shikamaru said, his hands in his pockets.
Goro smiled. "Perfect," he replied.
Reminder: If you want another double release get this story to 200 powerstones by next Sunday. This story will only continue if it gets enough support e.g. Powerstones. Also I'd like to get to 10 reviews on this story too, so give some reviews. Goal: 200 Powerstones for double release.
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