The Sakura Legend

Inside a room in a dense forest.

"They failed!! I heard you guys were skilled, that's why I paid a high price to hire you!" a short man in a suit shouted at a ninja sitting on the sofa opposite him, the ninja's forehead protector slanting across his face.

The ninja, hearing the man's shouts, didn't speak. He instantly grabbed the large sword beside him and pointed it at the man. "Shut your mouth. This time, I'll handle it personally. I'll cut off those guys' heads!"

"Uh... This time there won't be...any more mistakes, right? It...it seems they've also hired some pretty powerful ninjas," the man in the suit said, swallowing hard as he looked at the sword inches from his face.

"Hmph, who do you think you're talking to? I'm the Demon of the Hidden Mist, Zabuza Momochi! Just make sure you have the money ready," Zabuza said menacingly to the man in the suit.

"Th-This...this jonin, haha, it's fine, really... In short... if you don't protect me, I'm dead... But, that's nothing! You don't have to worry about it!" Tazuna said to everyone with a forced laugh. "If I die, the only one who'll cry their heart out... is my adorable grandson who just turned ten! And my daughter will spend the rest of her life alone, filled with resentment towards the ninjas of Konoha!"

"Sigh! It's certainly not your fault!" Tazuna sighed, his expression filled with grief and indignation, a look that would evoke sympathy in anyone who saw it.

"Alright, alright, there's nothing else for it... We'll continue to protect you," Kakashi said. He wasn't a completely heartless person, bound rigidly by mission rules. After Obito's death, Kakashi had learned to be flexible in his missions, rather than blindly adhering to regulations.

Tazuna's heart secretly rejoiced. "Got 'em."

"Sakura, release Mr. Tazuna," Kakashi said to Sakura.

Sakura walked over expressionlessly and undid the jutsu. Without chakra sustaining it, the swamp could no longer hold Tazuna. As Tazuna stood up, Sakura approached him and, from an angle hidden from the others, pulled out a kunai and pressed it against Tazuna's heart. "If my comrades encounter any ninjas they can't handle later, I'll be the first to kill you!!!"

Tazuna felt the kunai pressed against his heart and saw the cold look in Sakura's eyes. He nodded involuntarily, his earlier relief instantly vanishing. He saw the seriousness in Sakura's eyes. If such a situation arose, Tazuna believed Sakura would do it, because she was Tsunade's disciple.

Sakura was only saying this to scare Tazuna. The old man had repeatedly provoked Naruto and, to get protection, had said such disgusting things. He was truly annoying. Even if she actually killed him, Konoha wouldn't say anything. Lying about the mission rank and causing harm to the village's ninjas wouldn't garner any sympathy, no matter where you went.

Sakura couldn't stop the mission from continuing. Naruto had just suffered a setback and would certainly be unwilling to give up. And from Sasuke's impatient gaze these past few days, Sakura guessed that he wouldn't abandon the mission either. Sakura had no choice but to follow along and complete the mission, but she could at least scare Tazuna.

Next, it was time to travel. Although the Land of Fire wasn't far from the Land of Waves, there was still some distance. With an ordinary person in the group, they couldn't travel very quickly. That evening, Kakashi chose an open area and used Earth Style to create several rock shelters. Sakura was also a little tired after walking all day.

"Wow, Naruto, your grilled fish is actually pretty good," Sakura said, suddenly realizing that Naruto's cooking was quite tasty.

"Hehe, of course! I told you I could cook," Naruto said, scratching his head with a smile, clearly remembering Sakura saying he couldn't cook during the celebration a few years ago.

"Mmm~~~ The fish is grilled well, kid," Tazuna praised Naruto, eating the fish. After a day of anxiety, and with no further ninja encounters, he was feeling much more relaxed in the evening.

"Hehe, of course, old man," Naruto said with a smile to Tazuna. Because Tazuna had shown him some kindness, Naruto no longer disliked him.

Sasuke, eating his fish nearby, also showed an expression of enjoyment. It seemed Naruto really did have a knack for grilling fish; even Sasuke was won over.

"Sasuke, Naruto, after you finish eating, you two will take the first watch. I'll take the second watch," Kakashi said to Naruto and Sasuke.

"Night watch? Kakashi-sensei, I can do it alone. There's no need for Kakashi-sensei to stand watch," Naruto said, immediately volunteering after hearing Kakashi-sensei assign him a task. What a great opportunity to show off; how could Naruto miss it?

"Hmph, idiot," Sasuke said. "If you want someone to carry you on our journey tomorrow, then go ahead and stand watch by yourself. I won't carry a dead weight like you."

"What did you say, Sasuke?!" Naruto jumped up, ready to fight with Sasuke.

Sakura watched this scene, completely speechless. Couldn't Sasuke just speak normally? Did he have to provoke Naruto? Sigh!

"Naruto, stop causing trouble. We might have a battle tomorrow. We need to conserve our strength," Kakashi scolded.

"Hmph," Naruto turned his head away, ignoring Sasuke.

The next day.

The group boarded a boat, and under the cover of thick fog, they were nearing the Land of Waves.

"That bridge ahead. If you keep going straight, you'll enter the Land of Waves," the boatman said.

"Okay, Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, we're about to land," Kakashi said, waking up Naruto, who was still dozing, after the boat reached the shore.

Walking through the dense forest, Naruto kept looking around, searching for enemies. Yesterday's events were unbearable for someone as unwilling to lose to Sasuke as he was. He was constantly looking for a chance to prove himself.

When Sakura reached this point, she had already silently activated her Hardening Technique. If her memory served her correctly, they would encounter Zabuza around here. She needed to be cautious.

Just then, a whistling sound pierced the air from behind. Sakura, already on high alert, immediately dropped to the ground upon hearing the sound. Kakashi pushed Tazuna and Naruto to the ground, dodging the attack.

A large sword, of somewhat exaggerated length, was embedded in a tree ahead. Sakura estimated its length to be around two meters. Then, a ninja instantly appeared on the sword's handle.

"So it's the Copy Ninja, Kakashi Hatake. I was wondering why those two Demon Brothers failed their mission," the ninja standing on the sword said, turning his head, his voice menacing.

"You...you are..." Kakashi's eyes widened as he looked at the ninja.

"The Demon of the Hidden Mist, Zabuza Momochi," Zabuza continued. "Hand over the old man, will you? He's my target."

"Zabuza Momochi!!! I believe you're supposed to be a rogue ninja from Kirigakure," Kakashi said seriously. "Tazuna is my client, and I'm tasked with protecting him."

"So we can't come to an agreement. In that case, I'll just have to kill you first," Zabuza said coldly, looking at Kakashi, completely ignoring Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.