Chapter 124: Zabuza’s Path

The ever-present mist of Kirigakure enveloped everything in a dense, gray shroud that never seemed to lift.

Zabuza walked through the streets, his steps light, his face devoid of expression. He was still a student at the Academy, now in his second year, but he could already feel something inside him that set him apart from the others.

Hate.

A dull, burning hatred that grew stronger each day.

He had always been discriminated against.

His family belonged to the lowest ranks of the village. They were not illustrious ninja, nor did they possess a long tradition of warriors. They were nothing.

And the village knew it well.

His classmates constantly targeted him. Not a day passed without them mocking him, challenging him, or attempting to humiliate him.

"You'll never become a real ninja," they would say.

"They shouldn't even let people like you into the Academy."

The insults repeated like a mantra, the contemptuous glances pierced him like invisible blades. Every day, the same story.

At first, Zabuza felt nothing but rage and contempt.

Then, that rage turned into apathy.

He stopped feeling emotions. No one would ever accept him, no one would ever give him a chance. The village was rotten.

All those ninja were filth.

He would destroy them.

Of that, he was certain.

Flashback: Zabuza's First Year at the Academy

That morning had started like any other.

The Academy was full of students training, chatting, challenging each other.

As always, Zabuza was alone.

But that solitude didn't last long.

The usual third-year bullies had found him again.

"Hey, loser, what are you still doing here?"

"Maybe he still doesn't get that he's useless."

One of them shoved him against a wall. Zabuza wasn't afraid. Not anymore. Also if there would be too many of them, he would fought back.

In their eyes, there wasn't just contempt—there was also the cruel pleasure of crushing those beneath them.

"Maybe we should teach him to respect those above him."

One of the students clenched his fist.

But he never got the chance to strike.

"Enough."

A clear, confident, authoritative voice.

Zabuza looked up.

Standing between him and the older students was a boy. He didn't know him well, but he had seen him before. Ren Mizutani.

The third-year students stiffened.

"What do you want, Mizutani? This doesn't concern you."

Ren stared at them, unflinching.

"If you think this doesn't concern me, then you don't know me at all," Ren replied, his gaze unwavering. "If you're so confident in yourselves, why not try without the advantage of numbers?"

Zabuza said nothing. He remained still, watching Ren with empty eyes.

For the first time, someone had stepped in.

Something inside him cracked.

Maybe… not everyone was as he thought.

But that hope didn't last long.

At home, nothing was different from usual.

His mother was desperately trying to gather enough money to pay the rent. The landlord knocked insistently, demanding his money.

"You have until the end of the month. Or you're out."

The man's voice was harsh, cold. Without pity.

Zabuza said nothing. He simply watched the scene.

This is reality.

It doesn't matter who you are.

It doesn't matter if someone stood up for you once.

In the end, you're alone.

He was tired of living that way. Tired of watching his mother struggle every day for a few coins.

That was when an opportunity appeared.

During the first-year final exams, Zabuza had surpassed everyone.

It didn't matter who was in front of him. He had taken them down one after the other.

The hatred he felt gave him a strength the others lacked.

And someone had noticed.

A hooded man was watching him.

After the exam, he spoke to him for the first time.

"You have potential."

Zabuza turned, eyeing him warily.

"What do you want?"

The man smiled under his hood.

"To offer you an opportunity."

Zabuza remained silent.

"You want to be strong, don't you?" the man continued, his tone persuasive. "You want to prove to those who humiliated you that you're not inferior to them. That you're superior."

Zabuza clenched his fists.

"I can help you."

For a moment, the boy hesitated.

But when he returned home and saw yet another scene of his mother struggling, another eviction threat, he made his decision.

The next day, he accepted the man's proposal.

That hooded man, as he would later discover, was Fujino, a member of the Kirigakure Council.

Fujino began funding Zabuza.

He gave him scrolls, resources, forbidden techniques.

He had seen something unique in him.

Not just potential.

Resentment.

A student so young, with so much hatred, was perfect for his plans.

Because a person with that much anger is easy to manipulate.

Zabuza began training under Fujino's secret guidance.

And from that day on, his path was set.

Zabuza never forgot the incident with Ren.

But he never allowed himself to believe that things could change.

This was how the village worked.

Only the strong survived.

And he, more than anyone else, would become the strongest.

[Thanks everyone specially Jayroy_63 ,Sami_Alfoheday, BagusPardana, thefarmerboy007_7, Darkosiris_Lopez, Alexx_Sejas, Yasmin_Silva_3876, RyuB201, DaoistVVm1Vi, DaoistDW5XU4,DstarS, MonsterX, Acnol,DaoistSEsItM,bndr, RyuB201, VanHellsing6969, Daoist710883, LevinCloth, Daoist0thxiB, bndr, AKIB19,LevinCloth, Nonymous_H,silverkage, DaoistAZmi17,Alexx_Sejas, Morgoph, void_space_1915, Strandarn, AKIB19, Abdul_Salam_FASAMI, shadowborn, DarkGambit, and Miguel_024!

 Sincerely Thanks and remember about the Power Stones, these are the motivation for my work :) ]