ShuraZero
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Chapter 14: Cats, Bridges, and Broken Scripts
🕑 Added 2025-08-05 18:49:56 +0000 UTCThe first sign that the day was going to be a disaster was a sharp hiss, followed by a shout.
"Over there! It went into Pickle Alley!"
Sakura's voice was tense, a mix of a strategist and an exasperated babysitter.
"Sasuke-kun, the roof! Cut it off! Naruto, don't just run like an idiot, try to corner it!"
Naruto skidded around the corner, kicking up a cloud of dust and nearly crashing into a vegetable stand. The vendor shot him a murderous glare.
"I got it, Sakura-chan! No one escapes my Uzumaki Super-Chase-Technique! Believe it!"
He launched himself into the alley, an orange blur that completely ignored the word "subtlety."
From the opposite roof, Sasuke landed without a sound, a swift and efficient shadow. His dark eyes scanned the alley with an intensity that would have been appropriate for an assassin, not for their current target.
A furry brown demon, with a ridiculous red ribbon on its right ear, hissed from atop a fence, its yellow eyes shining with pure feline hatred.
Tora. The cat from hell.
"Ridiculous," Sasuke muttered, low enough for only himself to hear. "We're chasing a pet."
"It's not ridiculous!" Naruto yelled from below, as if he'd read his mind. "It's a high-stakes mission that tests our speed, teamwork, and love for animals! Now, surrender, you evil beast!"
Tora gave him another hiss and leaped from the fence to the opposite roof, moving with an agility that defied its obvious extra pounds.
Sakura sighed, running a hand over her face. She had positioned herself at the other exit of the alley, sealing the only escape.
"Sasuke-kun, it's heading your way."
"I see it."
"Naruto, stop yelling at the cat. You're just scaring it more."
"I'm intimidating it with my fighting spirit! It'll break soon and beg for mercy!"
Sakura watched Naruto. Her brain, the same one that had precisely analyzed the weakness in his genjutsu the day before, now processed the scene with a new layer of information. Naruto was an idiot, yes. He was loud, obnoxious, and his clothes were an offense to the eyes. But… he moved differently. He wasn't tripping over his own feet as often anymore. His skid around the corner, though clumsy, had been controlled. There was a strange solidity to his stupidity now.
"I've got it!"
Sasuke lunged. His movements were a poem of efficiency. He landed right in front of Tora, blocking its path. The cat tried to dodge, but Sasuke was already there, one hand outstretched. Not to grab it roughly, but to intercept its trajectory.
It was then that Naruto, completely ignoring Sakura's order, used the alley wall as a springboard and launched himself upward, landing awkwardly right behind the cat.
"Ninja Coddling Technique: Demon Cuddle!"
Naruto pounced. Tora, caught between a cold Uchiha and a demented Uzumaki, made a fatal mistake. It jumped up. Directly into Sasuke's hands.
Sasuke caught it in mid-air with almost insulting ease. Tora struggled, scratching and hissing, but Sasuke's grip was firm.
Naruto landed beside him, a huge grin on his face.
"See! Perfect teamwork! I scared it and you caught it! We're invincible!"
Sasuke looked at the squirming cat in his arms, then at Naruto, and his expression soured even more.
"You did nothing but get in the way, loser."
Sakura walked over, her earpiece communicators already put away.
"It doesn't matter. We have it. Mission accomplished. Good work, Sasuke-kun."
Naruto pouted.
"Hey! What about my good work? My plan was crucial!"
Sakura looked at him. The automatic response, the "shut up, you idiot!" was on the tip of her tongue. But she stopped. She remembered their conversation in the park, the strange seriousness in his eyes.
"Your plan was loud," she said, opting for a neutrality that surprised even herself. "But it worked. I guess."
Naruto lit up as if she had told him he was the greatest ninja in the world.
"Of course it worked!"
The trip back to return the cat was auditory torture. The owner, the Daimyo's wife, Madam Shijimi, squeezed Tora in a hug that threatened to suffocate it.
"Oh, my sweet little furball! Mommy missed you so much! I was so worried!"
Tora struggled, its claws scratching the air, its eyes begging for a quick death.
Naruto leaned toward Sakura.
"Now I get why it runs away so much."
Sakura couldn't stop a small smile from forming on her lips.
"I wouldn't be surprised if the next mission is to find it again."
In the Hokage's office, the air was heavy with the smell of paperwork and pipe tobacco. The Third Hokage smiled with the patience of a man who has seen it all.
"Well done, Team 7. Mission completed successfully."
Kakashi, who had been watching from a corner with his orange book in hand, gave a lazy nod.
"They were a bit loud, but efficient."
"That was thanks to me!" Naruto declared, puffing out his chest.
The Hokage chuckled.
"Very well, Naruto. Now, I have a list of new missions available for you. You could help pull weeds in Mrs. Inuzuka's garden, walk her dogs…"
Here it comes, Naruto thought. The key moment. The memory was vivid: his own voice, complaining, demanding something better, something more dangerous. The trigger that would lead them to Tazuna, to Zabuza, to Haku. To the first real battle.
And we're not ready. Sasuke was strong, but his mind was closed off. Sakura was smart, but she didn't trust her own strength yet. And he… he was still learning to handle the weight of two lives in his head. Forcing that mission now would be a disaster. He had to prevent it.
"Awesome!" Naruto exclaimed, with an enthusiasm that made everyone in the room blink. "Pulling weeds sounds amazing! It's training to strengthen our fingers for hand seals! And walking dogs is tracking practice! We'll take 'em, old man!"
Absolute silence fell over the office.
Sakura stared at him as if he'd grown a second head. Iruka, who was standing by the Hokage's desk, nearly dropped the stack of papers he was holding. Kakashi looked up from his book, one eyebrow arched.
The Hokage took the pipe from his mouth.
"You'll take them? Naruto Uzumaki, the one who always complains about boring missions, wants to pull weeds?"
"Of course!" Naruto said with a radiant smile. "A shinobi must master all facets of village life! It's part of the path to becoming Hokage! Connecting with the people and all that! Believe it!"
The logic was so twisted and so bizarrely positive that it almost sounded convincing. But for one person in the room, it was the last straw.
"No."
The word was a shard of ice in the warm air. It didn't come from Naruto, or from Sakura.
It came from Sasuke Uchiha.
He had been silent until that moment, a shadow in the background. But now he had stepped forward. His face was a mask of cold fury.
"We refuse."
Naruto froze. The script in his head shattered. No. No, no, no. I was supposed to be the one to complain. I was supposed to be the impatient idiot. What is happening?
"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura began, surprised.
Sasuke ignored everyone, his dark eyes fixed on the Hokage.
"We are shinobi of Konoha. We are not gardeners. We are not babysitters. Every hour we spend on these useless chores is an hour we aren't spending on training. An hour our enemies are using to their advantage."
His voice was low, but it resonated with a terrifying conviction.
"You assigned us an elite jōnin as our sensei. We are supposed to be a team prepared for combat situations. Yet you treat us like we're academy children. This is an insult to our potential. It is an insult to the Uchiha name. I demand a mission that will test our skills. A C-rank mission, at the very least."
The tension in the room was so thick you could cut it with a kunai.
Naruto felt a cold sweat run down his neck. This wasn't in his memories. It was a deviation. A butterfly effect caused by his own decision to be responsible. Sasuke, seeing that Naruto wasn't going to force the issue, had taken the role himself. And he was doing it with a much sharper, more dangerous logic.
The Hokage looked at Sasuke, his expression turning serious. He saw the last Uchiha loyal to Konoha, and in his eyes, he saw the reflection of the fire that had consumed his clan. He saw the ambition, the desperation to grow stronger.
"Mission ranks exist for a reason, Sasuke," the Hokage said calmly. "They are designed to correspond to a ninja's skill level and experience. Sending you on a higher-ranked mission would be irresponsible."
"And is it responsible to let our talent atrophy?" Sasuke retorted without hesitation. "To let the last Uchiha grow weak while his target grows stronger?"
The implicit mention of Itachi hung in the air. Kakashi lowered his book.
Naruto panicked. He had to stop this.
"Hey, Sasuke, you don't have to be so dramatic!" he cut in, trying to reclaim his role as the clown. "Pulling weeds can be fun! We can have a competition to see who pulls the most!"
"Shut up, loser," Sasuke hissed, without even looking at him. "This isn't a game to you. To me, it's everything."
Iruka stepped forward.
"Sasuke, that's enough! Show the Hokage some respect!"
But the Hokage held up a hand, silencing him. He looked at Kakashi.
"What do you think, Kakashi? Are they ready?"
Kakashi observed his team. Sasuke, tense as a drawn bowstring. Sakura, torn between Sasuke's ambition and Naruto's strange sensibility. And Naruto, whose face wore a forced smile that failed to hide the genuine worry in his eyes.
"They're a team of idiots," Kakashi said in his usual tone. "But they're my idiots. They have potential, though it's buried under several layers of dysfunction. A C-rank mission could break them. Or it could be exactly what they need."
The Hokage sighed, the smoke from his pipe forming a cloud above his head. He made a decision.
"Very well. There is a mission. C-rank. It involves escorting a client to his home."
Naruto felt the floor open up beneath him. No. Please, no.
"Who is the client?" Kakashi asked.
"A bridge builder from the Land of Waves. His name is Tazuna."
The words hit Naruto like a punch to the gut. It was real. It was happening. And not because of him, but because of Sasuke. His attempt to avoid fate had only changed the messenger.
"Bring him in," the Hokage ordered.
A few minutes later, Tazuna entered the office. He smelled of cheap sake and resentment. He looked at the three genin with disdain.
"Is this it? They promised me protection and they give me three brats. Especially the short one with the idiot face."
Naruto didn't even react to the insult. His mind was a whirlwind. Zabuza. Haku. The battle on the bridge. Kakashi's near death. Sasuke's near death. It all flooded his mind, not as a story he had watched, but as an imminent future that had just been sealed.
"I am Tazuna, the master bridge builder, and I demand that you get me to the Land of Waves safely, even if I have to be carried by these kids."
"Don't worry, Mr. Tazuna," Kakashi said with a smile in his eyes. "I'm a jōnin. You'll be safe."
"Hmph. I hope so."
Tazuna's cynical words were the final piece. For Naruto, it was the sound of a hammer driving the last nail into his plan's coffin. The script was broken. The future he knew was approaching like a freight train, and he was no longer in the driver's cab, but tied to the tracks. The panic, a wild animal he had kept caged, broke its bars.
"NO!"
The shout was so abrupt and piercing that it startled everyone in the room. Tazuna flinched. Sakura jumped. Sasuke, who had already turned to leave, stopped dead in his tracks.
"We can't take this mission!"
The Hokage took the pipe from his mouth, his patient, grandfatherly expression vanishing.
"Naruto, what is the meaning of this? The mission has already been assigned."
"You don't understand!" Naruto stepped forward, his hands balled into fists at his sides, his body trembling. "He's lying!"
He pointed directly at Tazuna, who visibly paled, his drunken bravado evaporating.
"W-what nonsense is this brat spouting? I don't know what he's talking about!"
"Yes, you do!" Naruto insisted, his voice rising, becoming shrill. "This isn't a C-rank mission! It's an A-rank mission, or maybe even higher! You're being hunted by ninja, real assassins!"
Sakura looked at him in horror.
"Naruto, shut up! What are you saying? You're making things up!"
"I'm not making anything up!" He turned to the Hokage, his blue eyes pleading. "Old man, you have to believe me! His country, the Land of Waves, has been taken over by a shipping magnate, a man named Gato. He's hired rogue ninja to eliminate anyone who gets in his way! And Tazuna is the one in his way! They want to kill him!"
A dead silence filled the office. Naruto's words, so specific, so detailed, were insane.
Iruka was the first to react, his face full of paternal concern.
"Naruto, calm down. You've had a very intense few days. Kakashi's test, the pressure of being a genin… Maybe you're imagining things. You're scared, it's normal."
"I'm not scared, I'm informed!" he shot back, desperate. "I know Gato has hired elite ninja! At least one rogue jōnin from the Village Hidden in the Mist! An expert in the silent killing technique!"
Kakashi, who had remained silent, analyzing the scene with his one visible eye, finally spoke. His voice was calm, but sharp.
"And how do you know all that, Naruto? Do you have a crystal ball in that pack of yours, next to the kunai?"
The question was a trap. He couldn't tell them the truth. He couldn't tell them about his memories of another life, of the anime, of being a spectator to his own tragedy. They'd lock him in an asylum.
"I… I just know! I have a bad feeling! My gut never lies, believe it!"
The excuse sounded pathetic, even to his own ears.
Sasuke let out a bitter, joyless laugh.
"Pathetic."
He turned to face Naruto, his black eyes burning with an icy contempt.
"So that's what this was all about. That whole speech about weeds was a front. You're just scared. You're afraid of a real mission."
"It's not fear, it's common sense!" Naruto yelled. "We're not ready to face a jōnin! Kakashi-sensei was almost defeated last time!"
He stopped, realizing his mistake. Last time.
"Last time?" Kakashi repeated, his eye narrowing. "What do you mean, 'last time,' Naruto?"
Naruto felt sweat bead on his forehead.
"I mean… next time! If we go, you'll almost be defeated! And Sasuke will almost die!"
"Enough!" the Hokage's voice boomed with an authority that silenced everyone. "Naruto, you are speaking nonsense. You are agitated and you are being incoherent."
The Hokage looked at Tazuna, who was sweating profusely and avoiding everyone's gaze.
"Mr. Tazuna, is there any truth to what this boy is saying?"
"Of course not!" Tazuna squawked defensively. "It's the imagination of a scared child! My country is poor, yes. And we need the bridge. That's why I can only afford a C-rank mission, for protection against common bandits and thieves! This kid is crazy!"
"Liar!" Naruto roared.
"Silence!" the Hokage commanded. His gaze fell on Naruto, and there was no anger in it, but a deep, weary disappointment. "Our intelligence reports no elite ninja activity in the Land of Waves. There are no indications of Gato's involvement in matters requiring A-rank assassins. Your 'gut feeling,' Naruto, contradicts all of our reports."
He turned to Kakashi.
"Kakashi. Your final opinion."
Kakashi watched Naruto for a long moment. He saw the genuine panic in his eyes, the desperation. But he also saw a boy who, just minutes ago, had happily accepted a gardening mission. The inconsistency was too great. The logical conclusion was that this was a panic attack. A sudden fear of the reality of the shinobi world.
"He's a fresh genin, Lord Hokage," Kakashi said slowly. "He doesn't yet understand the difference between a premonition and fear. He's overwhelmed. I'll take care of him. The C-rank mission stands."
The decision was final. Naruto felt like he'd been struck. He looked around, searching for a single face that showed a shred of belief in him.
Iruka looked at him with pity and concern.
Sakura was covering her face with her hands, shame radiating from her in waves.
And Sasuke… Sasuke was looking at him with pure hatred.
"Coward," Sasuke hissed, low enough for only the three of them to hear. "If you're so scared, stay here. Don't get in our way. We'll replace you with someone who actually has guts."
The words were sharper than any kunai. He wasn't just calling him scared, but replaceable. Useless.
Naruto was speechless. He had failed. His desperate attempt to tell the truth had only made him look like a lunatic and a coward in everyone's eyes. They had completely isolated him.
The Hokage sighed.
"Team 7, go home. Prepare your gear. You leave in one hour. Mr. Tazuna, wait here. Kakashi, stay for a moment."
Sasuke was the first to leave, without a second glance. Sakura followed, but she hesitated at the threshold and looked back at him, a mix of doubt and shame in her eyes, before leaving.
Naruto stood alone in the middle of the office for a second, the weight of his failure crushing him.
He walked out of the tower, the sunlight feeling too bright, too cheerful for the darkness he felt inside. He saw his teammates in the distance, already nearly out of sight. They hadn't even waited for him.
He had one hour. One hour to prepare for a mission he knew was a death trap, with a team that now believed he was an unstable coward.
He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
Fine. If you won't believe me, I'll have to show you.
If you won't listen, I'll make you see.
And if I have to drag you kicking and screaming through this mission to keep you alive, then so be it.
Comments
Ari Gómez García
Oh, you're right, that was actually a draft I had. Zabuza doesn't appear in the chapter where you read it anymore; I rewrote chapters 7, 8, and 9.
Prana
So speaking of zabuza, why did the genjutsu on Sakura speak about him ? In the test, their was no reason for Kakashi to make that specific référence. Or did I misunderstand something ?
