Chapter 45: The Mission of the Land of Waves

Seeing Might Guy's tough stance, Tazuna fell silent, his complexion changing repeatedly. Finally, he sighed, lowered his head, and confessed, "I did hide something from you before."

Tazuna then revealed the full truth about the situation in his country. Learning everything, Might Guy found himself in a dilemma. In addition to the two rogue ninja they had just killed, who were Chūnin level, they might even encounter other rogue ninja with Jōnin-level strength. This wasn't just a simple B-rank task; in terms of actual combat difficulty, it had reached the level of an A-rank mission! A-rank tasks had a very high mortality rate, even for elite ninja like Might Guy, which showed just how dangerous they were.

"Ren, what are your plans?" Might Guy asked Ren.

"Guy-sensei, let's continue the mission." A slight flicker of light appeared in Ren's eyes.

Hearing this answer, Might Guy's expression froze slightly. From Ren's eyes, as dark as night, he seemed to see a trace of excitement. Might Guy thought of Ren's current strength; he even had the power to contend with Jōnin-level ninja. So, he nodded and said, "Then let's continue this mission."

Ren and his companions set off again. Although they had reached the Land of Waves, they still needed to walk some distance to Tazuna's home. Walking on the deserted forest path, Ren and Might Guy's attitudes were a little more serious than before. But it wasn't their style to simply sit still and wait. Might Guy wasn't a sensory ninja, so the task of investigating the surroundings fell to Ren.

From his ring, Ren took out a small bag and emptied its contents onto the ground. What emerged were hundreds of small, mouse-shaped toys, each no larger than a fingernail. These were Scouting Rats, a three-star weapon. They possessed strong sensitivity to chakra and elemental powers, and the information gathered by all of them could be shared synchronously. These hundreds of Scouting Rats could help Ren collect all nearby information in the shortest time, forming a detailed information network that fed directly into his mind. With the help of the Scouting Rats, Ren's reconnaissance ability was not inferior to even professional reconnaissance ninja!

"Guy-sensei, someone's coming," Ren quickly relayed the intelligence feedback from the Scouting Rats.

Might Guy trusted what Ren said, so he nodded and instructed, "Ren, you protect Mr. Tazuna." Immediately, a powerful presence became apparent. With Might Guy's strength, he too felt the approaching chakra.

"Whoosh--!"

An afterimage flashed through the woods, landing on the trunk of a large tree in front of Ren and the others. It was a black-haired man with a large sword, a scratched forehead protector, and the lower half of his face and neck wrapped in bandages. Ren recognized at a glance that this person was one of the "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist" – Zabuza Momochi.

"Oh, you're not surprised at all. Could it be that you've already discovered my existence?" Zabuza drew his Kubikiribocho. Then he set his sights on Might Guy, the only one wearing a forehead protector. Immediately, a hint of doubt entered his eyes. Might Guy's green sportswear and his distinctive bowl haircut were too conspicuous; just a glance was enough to make an impression. 'He must be Konoha's Green Beast, Might Guy, who has become famous in the Five Great Nations, right? His strength as an elite Jōnin and his powerful taijutsu are well-known, even highly praised by the ninja best at taijutsu in the Land of Lightning.'

However, according to the information Zabuza had obtained, it seemed that Might Guy wasn't a ninja skilled in reconnaissance. 'Could it be the twelve-year-old kid next to him?' Immediately, Zabuza dismissed his own naive idea. 'That kid isn't even a ninja; how could he possess such abilities?' Zabuza, unable to figure out the answer, decided not to worry about the problem anymore.

"Give that old man to me, and I'll let you all leave." Zabuza's eyes fixed on Tazuna.

"Yoho! Another chance to fight!" Excitement shone in Might Guy's eyes, and he paid no attention to Zabuza's words. His green figure flashed through the air, already attacking.

"Konoha Whirlwind!" Might Guy's figure appeared in the sky above Zabuza. His right leg, full of power, slammed down fiercely. Zabuza frowned, clearly surprised by the speed and strength Might Guy displayed. He hurriedly raised the Kubikiribocho in his hand, using its thick blade to block Might Guy's fierce blow.

"Is it Konoha's Green Beast? It truly lives up to its reputation," Zabuza said in a deep voice. "But you're truly unlucky to meet me."

"Whoosh~"

Zabuza's figure dissolved into a pool of water and fell to the ground. He used the Water Clone Jutsu to change his position and appeared on the ground some distance away. His hands formed a hand seal on his chest, and a powerful wave of chakra erupted from his body as he shouted, "Hidden Mist Jutsu!"

A thick mist instantly filled the air. It had originally been only a cloudy day with thick clouds; now, it had completely turned into dense fog, completely blocking their line of sight.

"Ren, be careful! His target is Mr. Tazuna!" Might Guy immediately reminded Ren.

At this moment, Ren had already drawn the saber hanging from his waist and said softly, "Don't worry, he came just right!"

Clang-!

A crisp unsheathing sound echoed. In the next second, the continuous clang of metal colliding could be heard. Ren took a step forward and blocked in front of Tazuna. With only his Nichirin Blade, he easily resisted several rounds of Zabuza's offensive.

"This kid has such strength?" After several attempts, Zabuza's eyes were immediately drawn to Ren. Unexpectedly, although this kid didn't wear a ninja forehead protector, his strength was quite good. Not only did he resist several rounds of his attacks unscathed, but even his Mist Ninjutsu seemed to have no effect on him. 'Is this kid the sensory ninja I suspected before?'

And what made Zabuza even more curious was the black blade in Ren's hand that had blocked his Kubikiribocho. Zabuza asked in a deep voice, "Little brat, what kind of blade do you have in your hand?" Its entire body was dark, even the blade, like a black katana. It seemed to be made of a special mineral. Even Zabuza, who was proficient in swordsmanship, had never seen or heard of it.

"This blade of mine is called the Nichirin Blade." The urge to fight constantly rose in Ren's eyes, and he declared loudly, "I'll show you the true power of this blade!"

This Nichirin Blade had been made four years ago, and Ren had used it continuously to master the swordsmanship of the Breath of Water. The higher the rank of a weapon, the greater its general effect and ability. However, the lethality of weapons wasn't completely determined by their grade. Although this Nichirin Blade was only a three-star rank weapon, the lethality it displayed was comparable to a five-star rank weapon. Ren had also spent four years of constant exploration and practice. He had finally understood all the sword techniques of Breath of Water!

"Breath of Water! Crashing Tide!" Ren shouted loudly. He then raised the blade in his hand, tapped the ground with his toes, and with a powerful downward swing, aimed at Zabuza, who was moving backward and further away!

Shhh!

White blade light, sweeping blue water, transformed into the sharpest edge, instantly cutting through the thick fog in front of him. A three- or four-meter-long blue sword aura, within which azure water continuously surged, formed a monstrous wave that roared towards Zabuza. This sword energy spread very fast, like a tsunami, turning into huge waves that crashed against Zabuza round after round!