Chapter 27: The Ninja Hunter
Disclaimer:
Dialogue
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 27: The Ninja Hunter
Zabuza managed to stand up again but was visibly exhausted.
"Leave the rest to me, stand back!" Kakashi ordered them while jumping out of the lake. He was getting ready to finish off Zabuza, but then, all of a sudden, the enemy ninja was struck by several metallic needles in the neck and fell to the ground.
"Who goes there?!" Kakashi scanned the forest and found a masked figure standing on top of a nearby branch.
"Hehe, sorry I stole your prey. I was getting tired of waiting."
Kakashi approached Zabuza and placed two fingers on the neck.
"You killed him…" His eyes locked onto the masked person. "Who are you?"
The masked person jumped down and gave Kakashi a polite bow.
"Thank you for your assistance in taking down this dangerous individual. It would have been very troublesome without you and your…students." He then turned to stare at Naruto and Sasuke.
"Very talented students, I might add."
"Wait, I recognize that mask…" Kakashi said, now that he took a better look. "You're a ninja hunter from the Mist, aren't you?"
"Indeed, you are correct," the masked person replied.
"A ninja hunter?" Sakura asked.
"He looks almost our age…" Sasuke frowned.
"Yes, I was tasked by my village to hunt down missing ninjas, like Zabuza here." They pointed at the corpse.
"So, he is not an enemy then?" Sakura asked.
"I am not your enemy. I just need to retrieve the body and the sword, and I will be on my way," the hunter said while approaching Zabuza.
"You have to take the body?" Naruto asked with a hint of suspicion.
The ninja hunter took hold of Zabuza's sword and picked up the body of the fallen ninja.
"Your battle is now over. This sword is one of the Mist Country's treasures, so it must be returned, along with the body of the missing ninja. I thank you again for your cooperation…farewell…"
The hunter then disappeared, leaving only some leaves behind.
Sasuke continued to stare at the spot. "That hunter ninja…was very strong." Even with this brief encounter, he could tell this much.
"Indeed, he was very strong…" Kakashi covered his Sharingan and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He seemed to be troubled breathing.
"Teacher? Are you feeling okay?" Sakura asked.
"I'm fine…just a bit tired. Using the Sharingan consumes too much chakra." Kakashi noticed Sasuke's eyes on him.
"I will give you an explanation at a different time. Now we must get the client out of here…none of us are in shape for another fight."
"My house is not too far from here. You can safely rest there," Tazuna said.
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"Argg…." Kakashi groaned.
"Are you okay, sir? Is there anything I can bring you?" a beautiful black-haired girl asked him.
"You spoil me too much, Miss Tsunami. I could eat some porridge…and some vegetables if you have any," Kakashi answered.
"This technique of yours seems to really take a toll on your body," Naruto observed his teacher.
"Indeed…I won't be able to do much for a few days," Kakashi said.
"Well, we defeated that strong ninja, so they should leave us alone for a while, hahaha." Tazuna seemed to be in a much better mood now that he was at home.
"We?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Ah, my bottle is empty!" Tazuna exclaimed. "I'll go get some more." He hurried out of the room.
"I will go prepare something to eat." Tsunami gave them a polite bow and left the room.
"Say, Sakura," Naruto glanced at the pink-haired girl.
"Hmm?" She was a bit surprised by this. Naruto had barely talked to her during all the time they had been part of the same team. Sakura had been expecting him to ask her out, but he never mentioned anything.
"You have memorized a lot of books. Is it common for a ninja hunter to take the entire body? Because I remember reading somewhere that they only take the heads."
"Eh?..." That was not the question she was expecting. "Let's see…I think I read that too. But there was also something about taking the body under special circumstances."
"Special circumstances?" Naruto asked.
"Bloodline abilities," Kakashi answered his question. "The body of a ninja can hold many secrets, but it is imperative to never give the enemy the body of an ally who has some bloodline ability."
"Bloodline abilities…you mean like the Hyugas and their…what was it called?" Naruto asked.
"Byakugan." Kakashi nodded. "Yes, that bloodline ability belongs to the Hyuga clan. We also have…"
"The Sharingan, that belongs to the Uchiha clan," Sasuke interrupted him.
Naruto gave Sasuke a side glance.
"I see…so these bloodline abilities can be taken by others too…" He understood now why Sasuke was so upset. Their teacher was not part of his clan, but he was in possession of the Sharingan.
'Does this mean that I can also get this Sharingan?' Naruto thought about it.
Now, Naruto was sure that their teacher could not have stolen it, otherwise, he would have never been allowed to remain free. He did not know how severe it was treated, but stealing a clan's bloodline ability must be at least a very serious crime.
He was going to need more information about these matters. After all, stealing someone's precious possessions was a very valid way to increase one's power. At least, in the place where he came from…
Kakashi noticed Sasuke's look. "Sakura, Naruto…wait outside for a few minutes. I need to have a private conversation with Sasuke."
Naruto nodded. "Understood." He wished he could stay to also hear how Kakashi got that eye, but he did not mind it that much. It was just a matter of time before he found out what he wanted.
'In the end…I always get what I want.' Naruto left the room with a grin on his face.
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