It's been awhile since I've been able to post, I do apologize for this.

Unfortunately there was an incident.

Then that incident caused an incident.

And then that incident proved especially troublesome.

As always, I do not own Naruto.

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Zabuza had to admit, the last time a brat had impressed him this much was when Haku had finally mastered the use of her Makyo Hyosho. While it was true that the boy's kekkei genkai – whatever it happened to be – made him an obvious choice for stealth specialization, it was soon apparent to Zabuza that the field of open combat was where the child truly shined.

Not enough to pose a threat, of course. But it was rather impressive all the same.

Zabuza had lead off the attack, unsealing his zanbato and clearing the distance between them all in one smooth movement. He had been briefly disappointed in the boy when he seemed to make no movement to defend himself, his eyes merely widening in shock and fear.

That disappointment lasted only long enough for his sword to begin cleaving through the brat's stomach. Only for it, and the rest of the boy, to go up in a cloud of smoke.

It was further dispersed when he wasn't able to do much more than begin to wonder how the boy had gotten his hands on one of the Leaf's secret jutsu, before he was forced to dodge a veritable wall of kunai and shuriken. A wall which appeared to have been sped up by a ridiculously overpowered Fūton: Daitoppa.

Taking a quick glance at the now devastated woodland across from where he was once standing, Zabuza couldn't help but feel a burgeoning respect towards the brat. A respect which only grew when he watched a great deal of the kunai littering the ground also disappear in small poofs of smoke. Exactly how many secret techniques did this boy know? He'd only heard of one jutsu which could accomplish such a thing and it was said to be unique to the Sandiame Hokage.

If Zabuza was in possession of eyebrows, they certainly would have been raised.

Realizing that the brat wasn't currently in sight – which probably meant he was already scurrying out of the area as quickly as he could – Zabuza hurriedly went through the hand seals for one of his largest area-effect jutsu, silently thanking all the nearby sources of water.

"Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!"

Drawing water up from nearby streams, the sodden ground and even a decent amount which he'd created within by utilizing his element and then spat out in a rush, Zabuza began to form a massive tidal wave.

The giant wall of water twisted and churned, tearing up the ground beneath as it fought against his control, each loss seeming to send it into greater fury. He held it in that state for less than a second before releasing its rage upon the local landscape, watching as it tore through wood and earth, cleaving the ground to the very bedrock. It was not something which could be easily dodged; which was half of the reason Zabuza used it in the first place.

"Fūton: Daitoppa!"

The voices echoed across the clearing – obviously coming from more than one throat – and Zabuza saw the left side of his tidal-wave begin to buckle. He felt oddly disappointed that the boy was already re-using jutsu. I suppose it would be ridiculous to think he had an endless supply, still, I was kind of hoping so see one of those A-rank wall jutsu Iwa is so protective of.

Still, Zabuza wasted no time, first channeling all of the jutsu's chakra into the embattled area and then following up with a 'Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu' directly at its center.

The result – which Zabuza had hopped over to observe – was an immense explosion of white smoke as the water dragon plowed into the already-weakening shield of wind; followed by the appearance of a soaked, battered and shocked green-eyed boy.

Zabuza couldn't help but grin at the child.

"No. I don't think this is going to go very well for you at all."

Unfortunately, the rest of the battle wasn't quite as impressive. Zabuza was interested enough in what else the boy knew that, had it been anyone else, he would have allowed them a bit of breathing room; but with the brat's Kekkei Genkai that wasn't really an option. He knew full well that if he gave the boy even an inch he'd soon be scampering out of here on four feet.

As it was, his taijutsu style was impressive, but obviously still in its beginning stages. Strength and speed were well above average for his age. And his endurance… Zabuza didn't know if he'd ever seen anyone keep getting up after taking such a beating.

This, combined with mysterious access to high-level hidden jutsu, and an even more mysterious Kekkei Genkai, made Zabuza very reluctant to kill his little green-eyed terrorist.

Which is what lead to the current situation.

"Well, boy." Zabuza said, staring down at the bloody and broken mess of a child before him. Admittedly one which was laying within an entirely destroyed landscape. "I don't suppose you're willing to reconsider my offer? Or do you perhaps have another awesome little jutsu you've been saving for just this moment?"

Zabuza asked the last with a grin and, perhaps, a bit of actual interest. He'd been annoyed at not being able to play a bit more with the brat earlier, and he certainly wasn't going anywhere now. Not with both of his legs broken.

The boy coughed a bit, before spitting out a glob of bloody phlegm and levering himself to his knees. Zabuza unconsciously found himself nodding in approval. A shinobi should never show pain before an enemy.

"I do have one, actually." The boy finally croaked out while popping two dislocated fingers back into place. "But it's not entirely mastered, so I figure there's an even chance of it succeeding, or just really, really pissing you off."

Zabuza couldn't keep himself from once again breaking out in laughter. Beyond the flashy jutsu, amazing potential, and a Kekkei Genkai so fearsome it would have almost given reason to Yagura's mad genocide; the Demon of the bloody mist was finding yet another to keep the brat alive.

He liked the boy.

He found himself looking a few years into the future and seeing an image which pleased him greatly. Him, standing center-stage in the flowing robes of the Mizukage with the oh-so-loyal Haku chan at his right as chief bodyguard – willing to live or die for him at but a word. And at his left, as his chief enforcer and assassin, the little green-eyed terrorist kneeling before him.

It was a heady image. Intoxicating. Which might explain the foolishness of his next actions.

"Tell you what boy, go ahead and give it a try." Zabuza said with a still lingering chuckle. "I promise not to get too upset."

The boy blinked, looking momentarily stunned.

"Wow, really? I mean, I was going to do it anyway, but I suppose that is a bit of a comfort."

Zabuza was about to raise his head in another burst of laughter when suddenly it, and everything below the neckline as well, froze into place. Then two echos of the brat's voice could be heard behind him.

"Kagemane no jutsu, success."

The fear his paralysis sent coursing through his veins was quickly subsumed, however, by one far greater. One caused by the number and variety of handseals the brat in front of him was hastily going through.

He had only just began to struggle – pressing his chakra against the boy's disturbingly potent own – when the jutsu's name was spoken.

"Fūton: Shinkūgyoku!"

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Before Naruto had left Konoha he'd always wondered what it was like to fight an epic battle, to face dangerous and highly-ranked opponents. Even afterwards, when he first found out that Gato had hired one of the seven swordsmen of the mist, behind all of the fear and doubt – and the occasional pondering of his mental state – he had subconsciously wondered how he would fare against such a foe.

He could now say that he was fully aware of the answer.

Frankly, the fight hadn't really been all that epic either. And he wasn't sure if he could really say that he'd 'faced' his dangerous and highly ranked opponent considering he spent most of his time trying to run away.

Most of his hopes had disappeared the moment his first attack had failed. He figured he would only have one real chance against someone of Zabuza's level, so he more or less went all out once he'd succeeded in substituting himself with a clone.

The 'Shuriken kage bunshin no jutsu' was a ridiculously potent technique just on its own, one his clones had spent almost the entirety of their first week here trying to learn – only able to achieve any small amount of competence due to his prior experience with the Kage Bunshin. He figured that if he increased its momentum by having a clone throw a 'Diatoppa' into the mix he might actually have a decent chance at getting rid of his – and the villages – greatest threat. After that failed, he was mostly focused on survival and eventual escape.

Plans which were pretty well nixed once Zabuza decided to destroy most of the surrounding area with a forty foot tidal wave.

He lost most of his clones trying to keep the massive wall of water from crushing him, the last two transforming into insects while cloaked in the white smoke of their fallen comrades. Naruto might have done so as well, but he figured that if Zabuza couldn't find him, the bastard would just keep popping out large-area destructive jutsu until he did. Destructive jutsu which might well kill him.

The best solution seemed to be to use his hubris against him. Zabuza had already shown himself to be an arrogant man with a penchant for the dramatic, so Naruto thought he would simply attempt to feed those urges, making a quick escape while his opponent was otherwise occupied with a monologue.

It didn't quite work out the way he'd planned.

The next five or so minutes were pure torture.

One moment the Demon of the bloody mist was crouching on a tree limb, chuckling at him, and the next he had simply seemed to fade away. Before reappearing at Naruto's side, shattering two of his ribs and hurling him through the underbrush.

Naruto had barely gotten to his feet before the man struck again, his blows either easily slipping past his defenses or ignoring them altogether – brute strength simply plowing through Naruto's futile attempts to block.

The worst part was that Zabuza really did seem to be taking it easy on him, looking either bored, or, at most, mildly interested the entire time he thoroughly beat Naruto back and forth across the now destroyed clearing.

Even before Zabuza shattered his right knee – using an almost humiliatingly delicate looking snap-kick – Naruto pretty much knew it was over. The man's skill, speed and power so thoroughly eclipsed his own that it was already an inevitable conclusion.

Which is why he considered the destruction of his other knee to be in slightly bad form. Humble in victory Zabuza was not.

At the end of it all, he was left in a broken heap right in front of the man. Going through what little options he had left.

In fact, there was only one. And it was slim, crazy, and quite nearly hopeless.

"Well boy" Zabuza said cockily above him. "I don't suppose you're willing to reconsider my offer? Or do you perhaps have another awesome little jutsu you've been saving for just this moment?"

Naruto rolled slowly onto his already healing knees, waiting for his last remaining clones to get into position before fixing his hands into a rat seal while mimicking setting his already healed fingers. He almost grinned – despite the rather substantial pain he was still in – at how wide their eyes grew at his ridiculous request.

"I do have one, actually" he said honestly, watching as slow, hesitating shadows grew from under his struggling clones. "But it's not entirely mastered, so I figure there's an even chance of it succeeding, or just really, really pissing you off."

He couldn't have asked for a better favor when Zabuza began to laugh wildly yet again. The Shadow jutsu the Nara clan specialized in might not be a kekkei genkai, but there was a reason they were all such geniuses. The toll it took on the mind was enormous, even its beginning technique stretching his concentration to the limit; leaving him doubtful about ever being able to master it, or even contemplate trying to learn any others.

The Kagemane no jutsu was one of two advanced techniques his clones had been focused on since his second week here – and since he'd learned of a shinobi presence. Neither had ever really been performed successfully. Though he and his boss clone did consider the Kagemane to have a bit of a lead; mostly because it wasn't destroying half a dozen clones each time it failed.

"Tell you what boy, go ahead and give it a try." Zabuza said after shaking himself a bit. Totally ignoring the short glances Naruto was sending to the growing shadows. "I promise not to get too upset."

Naruto didn't have to fake his gob-smacked expression.

"Wow, really?" He said, not sure how to respond except honestly. "I mean, I was going to do it anyway, but I suppose that is a bit of a comfort."

As Zabuza once more flung his head back in a deep belly-laugh, Naruto knew that this would be their only chance. The snail's pace at which Naruto and his clones could utilize the Kagemane made it useless in combat and painfully obvious to an undistracted target. They needed to move now.

Luckily the clones seemed to share Naruto's analysis of the situation, doubling over in pain as they forced the slim strands of shadow to clear the last few meters in a rush.

The shock coating Zabuza's face might have been ego-boosting had the current situation been in any way different. As it was, with the vast majority of his bones broken or fractured – and once enormous chakra levels dwindling – Naruto wasted no time in beginning the second part of his more-than-likely-suicidal plan.

This is not going to end well. He thought to himself as he began to form the hand-signs of a jutsu he shouldn't even be contemplating bringing into battle. The widening eyes of his clones across the plain seemed to agree with his assessment. He was surprised – and not a little bit proud – that they had managed to keep control of the Kagemane in their shock.

Kami knows they wouldn't be able to in a moment.

"Fūton: Shinkūgyoku!"

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Kakashi frowned as he felt another surge of chakra.

He might not be much of a sensor himself, but one didn't survive a war – or become captain of Konoha's Anbu division – without maintaining at least some skill in the technique.

His Genin were oblivious as small bursts of energy – all from jutsu of at least B rank or higher – echoed across the small island. As a matter of fact, they – or at least two of them – seemed to be a bit put out at the lack of action since encountering the Demon Brothers. Sasuke especially had become more and more aggravated to not find some kind of action after reaching Wave's shore. Utterly ignoring the pensive expression which had been growing on his sensei's face.

To Kakashi the chakra bursts meant something far more important than just a high level battle between shinobi occurring. It meant an utterly unnatural event was taking place on Wave Island.

And such things rarely brought good news.

After the Demon Brothers, Kakashi expected perhaps one to two C to B rank missing nins might be left over working for Gato. It would make no sense for anyone to hire more than that give the size and general worth of the Island they were currently situated on. Wave really wasn't much of a power – socially, financially or militarily – they weren't in any real position to be anything other than a stopping point for a limited amount of over-seas traffic.

That there was someone willing to expend the money to hire missing nin here at all was odd.

That there should be shinobi other than he and his team here to do combat with those missing nin was ridiculously suspicious.

He looked curiously over at Tazuna san for a moment, before shaking his head. The bridge builder had told them all he knew of the situation here in Wave; Kakashi had done enough interrogations to know that. Whatever was going on here involving the shinobi villages was completely unknown to the drunkard.

Suddenly Kakashi froze in his tracks: the slithering chakra signal flowing over the Island feeling far too familiar.

That's a Nara technique being used! He thought to himself; oblivious to the three children and single bridge builder now staring at him. And it must be a ridiculously potent one as well, to be putting off such a signal; the Nara's train thoroughly in dimming the echo of their jutsu specifically because it's so recognizable!

His thoughts were interrupted, however, as a swell of chakra so large that even his Genin took notice began to rise.

"Manji Formation!" He yelled, not even taking the time to appreciate how quickly his students responded to his directions, so quickly was he going through hand signs.

"Doton: Doryūheki!"

Kakashi slammed his hands into the ground in a rush, a large wall imprinted with the stern faces of the nin-dogs he was proud to call companions erupting from the earth between his students and the large mass of chakra. Only for it to be of no purpose.

Most of the chakra rushing towards them seemed to be just that. Chakra. Invisible and harmless without being molded into form or function, it wisped through both the giant stone wall and Kakashi himself; leaving him to believe it was the result of a failed or interrupted high-level jutsu.

He continued believing that, even relaxing his control on the wall slightly, right up until the explosion.

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AN: Sorry for the short chapter. And for the continued cliffhanger.

I'll hopefully be posting more frequently.