The Waves Liberation (2)

10 advanced chapters on my Patreon: Fiction Haven

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[Yūhi Kurenai's POV]

Incredible. It was the only word I could think of to describe what I had just seen. Uzumaki Naruto was not only talented. He was an exceptional genius. It was ridiculous to keep him a Genin. No Genin could face a Jōnin as easily as he did and Zabuza was an exceptional Jōnin. Kakashi-san didn't brag enough about him.

"Man, since when did you get that strong!?" Kiba exclaimed both in shock and amazement.

The rest of my students were just as shocked. They rarely met Naruto-san as he was always busy with training, so they didn't know. Only Jōnin knew about the rising star, but we didn't discuss it much. Even then, I, someone with prior knowledge of his abilities, was still shocked by what I saw. I dare wager that anyone would also react the same way.

"Naruto, are you okay?"

As the last Uchiha rushed at Naruto-san, I was reminded that he suffered an injury. He was so casual about it that I forgot about it. Following his teammate, I ran to his side. A quick look at his abdomen told me that it was still bleeding.

"Move aside. Let me tend to him."

The Uchiha boy frowned lightly. "Do you know Iryō Jutsu?"

Before I could say something, Kakashi-san put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Trust Kurenai, Sasuke. She knows a little bit of Iryō Jutsu."

The boy grunted before giving me way. Kakashi-san should teach the boy manners. He should learn to respect his superiors. I looked at Naruto-san and asked if I could touch him. Asking for consent from a patient was part of the procedure. Naruto-san waved his hand, prompting me to lift his shirt along with his vest.

The clothes were drenched in blood. It made me wonder how he could maintain his consciousness and fight in that state. Expecting to see a horrible cut, I was floored by what I saw. There was a cut in his abdomen, but it was not severe enough to let out that much blood. Then, I realized that the wound was rapidly healing.

"I am fine," Naruto-san said, holding my hand and pulling it away from his wound. "I am not a normal Ninja."

I looked at him in understanding and nodded my head. It must be one of the traits he possessed as a Jinchūriki.

"You should check on your students first. They might not be hurt physically, but they won't be fine after what happened."

His words reminded me of the horrified looks my students showed when Zabuza appeared before us. I had been intimidated when Zabuza flared his killing intent and I had been exposed to killing intent more than once. My students would need comfort. That also made me wonder about how Naruto-san felt.

"I was planning to do that after treating you. With that said, what about you?" I asked, careful not to sound condescending.

He waved his hand dismissively. "Let Kakashi worry about that. Besides, I have killed more people than your team met during their missions."

That was surprising but not unexpected. With skills like that, I was sure he had been assigned to a lot of independent missions with Kakashi-san as his overseer. I excused myself and went to my students. Kiba was sitting on the ground, petting Akamaru with a distracted look. Hinata planted her gaze on the ground, grasping the pink-haired Kunoichi's hands tightly. Shino remained as stoic as ever, but his feet wobbled ever so slightly.

I called out to my team, causing them to look at me. I couldn't express how sorry I was for being a pathetic teacher, so I just knelt and hugged them together. I was glad we survived. When I saw Zabuza's clones kick them around, I was furious. I could only watch as they helplessly went against the clone as I couldn't beat the accursed swordsman.

"I am sorry for what I made you through. It wouldn't have happened if I had been stronger," I apologized.

"It's fine, Sensei. I bet you could beat that guy if you didn't have to worry about us," Kiba said encouragingly, earning an agreeing bark from Akamaru.

"K- Kiba-kun is correct, Sensei. We are glad that you are all right," Hinata added shyly.

My heart stung as I looked at her. The bruise on her neck was a glaring reminder of what I had failed to do: protect my students.

"Don't stretch yourselves over, Sensei. You are strong, but Uzumaki-san happens to be better at dealing with Zabuza-san," Shino supported in his neutral tone, making me wince at how blunt he was being.

When I let go of them, I sighed in relief at their lightened mood. Kiba excused himself and ran toward the Uchiha boy who was standing slightly behind Naruto-san. Naruto-san was talking with Tazuna-san with a face that meant business. Kakashi-san stood beside him, content on merely watching him as he dug information out of the old man.

"What do you think?" Naruto-san asked Kakashi-san as I approached them.

"Well, this matter is above a C-Rank pay grade, for sure," Kakashi-san responded. "But I have a feeling that you have a plan."

"I do, Kakashi, but it will involve a massacre."

"Are you planning on killing all of the bandits?"

"We have enough manpower."

I stopped close to the two of them, causing them to turn their heads my way. I hadn't heard the details of what truly happened from Tazuna-san, so I couldn't understand what they were talking about. Naruto-san gave me a summary of what happened in the Land of Waves. I instantly understood what they were planning.

"Are you going to make everyone kill?" I asked with a frown.

"They will soon have to do it, Kurenai-san," Naruto-san pointed out.

"That is not what I am worried about. What about their safety?"

"We are just going against thugs. Even if they are armed, they are no different from civilians."

They were nothing. Naruto-san didn't consider them a threat. It was technically true. However, quantity could beat quality given the right amount. He could casually talk about it because he had far outstripped a normal Genin. My students were unlike him. A lucky shot could take their lives in an instant.

"I can cover for your team if you are worried about them." He waved his hand as if he could read my mind. "Now, let's move on. We haven't had a good sleep; in case you haven't noticed."

Following his hand gesture, I properly looked at the other members of Team 7. They did look quite drowsy. He even yawned after pointing that out. They must have run with minimal rest to catch up to us. It was amazing to think that they could function well even in their state. Team 7 was truly something.

…

We had arrived at the house of the Tazuna-san the bridge builder. We were waiting for him as he notified his daughter of our arrival. Sasuke and the pink-haired Kunoichi who I just recently figured out was called Sakura could barely keep their eyes open. Naruto-san had more than once bonked their heads to make them more vigilant of their surroundings.

Not long after, Tazuna-san got out of his house with his daughter, a dark blue-haired woman wearing a short-sleeved pink shirt and a long blue skirt. She must be in her late twenties, but she didn't look any older than me.

"Ah, everyone, this is Tsunami, my daughter," Tazuna-san introduced. "Tsunami, this is the Ninjas who saved my life. I owe them a lot."

"Thank you for what you did for my father, everyone. My name is Tsunami," the woman sincerely bowed.

We introduced ourselves one by one. Kakashi-san and I went first as we were the ones responsible for our teams. My team introduced themselves after us. Followed by that were Sakura's polite introduction and Sasuke's noncommittal introduction.

Tsunami-san and Tazuna-san turned to Naruto-san as he remained quiet. Instead of introducing himself, he walked up to Tsunami-san and stood in front of her. Tazuna-san looked worried by his behavior, but Tsunami-san merely looked up curiously. He leaned down and put his mouth beside her ears.

"Do you mind showing me the room?" he said, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Tsunami-san blinked in confusion before her face turned red. "W- Well, that is…"

Everyone just looked at Naruto-san dumbly for what he had said. The Ninja looked like he couldn't understand why everyone was making a big deal out of what he had said.

"We want to rest. That's what the room is for," Sasuke grunted.

"O- Oh… it's about that?" Tsunami-san sighed in relief.

Naruto-san frowned before sighing lightly in amusement. "My, my, what a naughty girl. Let's think about it when we are alone."

"…"

"Now, show me the room, please. Kids, let's go!"

"Y- Yes…"

With that, Tsunami-san disappeared into the house with Naruto-san and his teammates. The rest of us watched their retreating backs dumbfoundedly. Tazuna-san was in disbelief, as I was. My Genin Team seemed unable to wrap their heads around what their fellow Genin had just said. On the contrary, Kakashi-san giggled disturbingly.

I decided that I needed to talk with Naruto-san about how to treat a woman. I was afraid that Kakashi-san might have taught something inappropriate to him.

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Honorary Mention:

Daoist Mufasa

Deividas Seputis

Florin Durbaca

Jamaul Pryor

Joseph Hollon

Luck George

Luis Fabiano

Zion X