It's better to be a rebel ninja than to be a Hokage

The climate at sea cannot be understood based on experience on land.

The Fire Kingdom in May can be said to be sunny and have a pleasant climate.

But near the border of the island country of Wave Country, a cold and humid fog covered the entire sea surface, which was not like the weather in May at all.

And in such thick fog, a small boat was sailing slowly and cautiously.

On board the ship were Dazna and the members of the Seventh Ninja Team of Konoha who were responsible for protecting him.

Naruto sat at the bow of the ship, looking ahead which was completely obscured by the thick fog.

The weather in Wave Country is just like the country's invisible future.

The Wave Country, which is made up of a dozen scattered islands of varying sizes, had its transportation rights controlled by the tycoon Cardo a year ago.

The interests of the entire country were illegally seized by Cardo, making the Kingdom of Waves an extremely poor country.

Violence, darkness, and disorder - this is the Land of Waves, which is ruled by a violent group formed by rebellious ninjas and wandering samurai.

Once Dazna, an expert in bridge construction, completes the cross-sea bridge, Cardo, who has lost his right to transportation, will lose everything in the Kingdom of Waves.

This is why there were ninjas who assassinated Dazna.

In the impoverished Land of Waves, Dazna was already struggling to pay for the construction of the bridge, and he simply couldn't afford to pay the commission for hiring ninjas.

——These are the reasons why Dazna lied about the commissioned information after Team 7 confirmed that they would continue the mission.

On the surface, this was just ordinary oppression.

But if it weren't for the Third Ninja World War more than a decade ago, Cardo would not have been able to hire enough rebellious ninjas and wandering samurai to suppress and rule a country.

And people like Cardo are everywhere in the entire ninja world.

Since the Third Ninja World War... no, since the Warring States Period, hatred and riots have always been the main theme of the Ninja World.

It has long been like a curse, lingering around everyone.

……

After an unknown amount of time, the ship finally docked at the shore.

"I'll take you here."

The boatman spoke in a low voice, as if he was afraid of the haze deep in the fog.

Naruto looked around where the boatman had docked his boat.

This is not a normal ferry at all, but a remote path that can only be found by experienced boatmen who have been roaming the waters of the Land of Waves for many years.

It was not the stop agreed upon at the beginning.

"Thanks a lot."

Dazna did not blame the boatman for breaking the contract. He was the first to get off the boat and waited for the members of Team 7 who were protecting him to get off the boat one after another.

Arriving in the Land of Waves, Dazna is not only the object that Team 7 is supposed to protect, but also the guide of this unfamiliar land for Team 7.

Seeing Kakashi approaching him, Dazna adjusted his reading glasses and said, "Thank you for your willingness to continue the mission."

Kakashi casually echoed Dazna.

However, even with his face covered by a mask, the troubled feeling in his heart could be easily seen.

When a ninja receives a commission, he will find a way to complete it.

The public credibility of the ninja village is maintained by this.

However, if the reason is reasonable and the executing ninjas reach a consensus, they can also unilaterally terminate the mission.

Dazna's commission is a task that can be terminated by a ninja within the specified period.

Once Team 7 reaches a consensus, Kakashi will take Dazna back to the Konoha Ninja Village.

After returning to Konoha, Dazna will choose to cancel the commission, or adjust the commission level to its original B-level difficulty.

By that time, everything had nothing to do with Class 7.

Kakashi originally thought that if anyone in Team 7 had objections.

It should also be from Sasuke who is eager to become stronger quickly;

Or it may appear in Naruto, who dreams of becoming Hokage and wants to be recognized by everyone in the village.

Either they both opposed aborting the mission.

After all, given Naruto and Sasuke's personalities, Kakashi would not be surprised by such a choice.

Kakashi really didn't expect that Sakura would want to continue the mission.

Kakashi probably guessed what was going on behind Sakura's choice.

Originally, before being attacked by the demon brothers, Sakura was still chatting with Sasuke as usual when performing missions.

But after deciding to continue on to the Land of Waves, Sakura remained silent.

It seems that the battle with the demon brothers made Sakura realize the gap between herself and Naruto and Sasuke, which made her feel pressured.

That's why Sakura couldn't give up this rare opportunity to grow.

Kakashi paid attention to the surroundings and protected Dazna while observing the conditions of the three members of Team 7.

Since he had decided to continue the mission, Kakashi began to think about countermeasures when encountering the enemy based on the actual situation of Team 7.

The enemy was able to send two chunins while Dazna was still in the Land of Fire.

Now we have arrived at the Land of Waves, the enemy's main base...

The next attacker will definitely be a jonin-level ninja who is stronger than chunin.

Team 7's previous battle with the Oni Brothers had proven that they already had the strength to protect their clients.

Although the Jonin-level enemies that will appear later will be difficult for them to deal with, if they don't deal with Kakashi first, they will not be able to attack Dazna who is protected by Naruto and the others.

I hope the journey after landing will be safe.

Kakashi hoped so in his heart.

Unfortunately, it is normal in this world that things go against one's wishes.

There was an unusual sound in the forest, a sound even quieter than Kakashi's own breathing.

But Kakashi still sensed the danger at the first moment.

"Everyone get down!"

Kakashi's keen combat intuition allowed him to make an instant judgment.

Upon hearing Kakashi's order, Sakura and Sasuke immediately followed the command to get down before confusion overtook them.

Dazna, who did not respond to Kakashi's orders in time, was also pressed to the ground by Naruto with his head pressed down.

This is the difference between ninjas and ordinary people.

In battle, absolutely trust the leader's orders and maintain your own personal judgment.

The moment the three members of Team 7 and the client lay down together, a terrifying whistling sound reached everyone's ears.

A huge sword was spinning at high speed in the air, attacking the direction where everyone was originally standing.

If Kakashi hadn't shouted in advance, this big sword would have cut them in half!

Instead of hitting the target as expected, the sword ended up hitting the trunk of the tree in front of Kakashi.

At the same time as the broadsword was stopped by the tree, a man appeared on the handle of the broadsword that was chopping across the tree.

That was the man who attacked everyone.

A strap for carrying a broadsword hung diagonally across the man's naked upper body.

His hair was black, and his mouth and nose were wrapped in white bandages, covering half of his face.

The forehead guard is worn diagonally on the head, and the four wavy strokes (two on the top and two on the bottom) on the forehead guard indicate the man's identity.

The same as the two ghost brothers before - the Hidden Mist Ninja.

"I never thought you were in the Land of Waves... the rebel ninja of the Hidden Mist, the demon Momochi Zabuza."

Kakashi looked intently and revealed the man's identity.

Kakashi was alert to Zabuza and gave orders to the members of Team 7 who were in a fighting stance behind him: "This guy is not someone you can handle. Form a defensive formation and protect Mr. Dazna."

After he finished speaking, Kakashi reached out and lifted up the forehead guard he wore on his left eye as an eyepatch, revealing the eye that had been hidden.

In the left eye socket with a vertical scar is a strange, bright red eye with three black magatama spinning in the pupil.

"I didn't expect that the person protecting that old guy would be the famous copy ninja - Kakashi of the Sharingan."

Zabuza also acted as if he knew Kakashi inside and out.