Chapter 30: The Waves Liberation (6)
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[Yūhi Kurenai's POV]
The last two days had been eye-opening. We lived in a harsh world where weakness meant a death sentence. The powerless could only be safe under the protection of those who had power—the Shinobi. The Land of Waves didn't have Shinobi. They had to fend for themselves. They lived every day in fear, hoping that today wouldn't be their turn. It was a sad sight to see.
I was not a stranger to suffering and wickedness, but what happened in the Land of Waves reminded me that not everyone lived in fortune. The villagers of Konoha were lucky to have the loyal Shinobi to protect them. Gato was merely a businessman who had enough money to hire a Shinobi to protect him. It was humorous in a way.
At the end of the day, only Shinobi could make a change in this world. When Naruto-san expressed how insignificant the civilians before his eyes were, I couldn't agree with him. I felt like he was looking down on them. However, the reality proved his words right. Civilians were very fragile and prone to death.
"Thank you again for sharing with us, Kurenai-san, Hinata-chan."
"We are happy to help."
"Y- You're welcome."
Naruto-san had given me some money that he got from the thugs he had beaten and told me to feed the people with it two days ago. He had said that he didn't know which family the thugs had robbed the money from, so it was better to help everyone than to keep the money until we found the families to whom the money belonged. I had agreed, so we set up a stand of free food ever since.
The people had been wary at first. Years of living under Gato's tyranny had taught them not to take everything for granted. Those who didn't hesitate to receive our help had been ready to do anything we told them. The hunger made them willing to do everything to prolong their lives even for another day. It was heartbreaking.
Seeing people passing by and listening to the stories told by those who came to us for the food allowed me to peer into the world of the powerless. Their tone was laced with fear. They spoke carefully as if they were afraid the devil would appear if he caught them badmouthing him. Therefore, I could tell that the citizens were in a lighter mood these days.
They weren't as wary as they used to be. The poor mother who had always looked so gloomy because her daughter was kidnapped by the thugs could smile now. Something must have happened. It shouldn't be a bad thing given their behavior.
"Yo, Kurenai-san, Hinata. How is it going?"
A familiar voice called out, causing me to turn to the right. I was quite startled since I didn't sense any presence approaching.
"Hello, Naruto-san. Everything is going rather well."
"H- Hi, N- Naruto-kun."
Hinata shifted uncomfortably and then hid behind my back. The lass had a huge crush on the boy. Her personality already made it difficult for her to deal with people, so being in the vicinity of her crush must be hard. I had more than once spotted her almost fainting when Naruto-san was talking to her.
"Are you not training with Kakashi-san?" I asked, curious.
"Do you think I still need that?" he retorted with a quirked eyebrow.
"I heard you like to train by yourself."
"Yup. I need a break right now. That is why I am here."
Walking toward us, he stood beside me. Hinata was close to fainting, but Naruto-san was too busy manning the stand to notice. I put my hand on the lass' shoulder and told her to rest. I manned the stand with him and carefully watched his behavior. As I expected, he had an ulterior motive. He seemed to be looking for someone.
He did well in hiding his true intention. Despite his reclusive nature, he knew how to deal with people. He easily charmed the female population. He could even make mothers fluster. Good thing, he only did it to lighten up the mood. I had seen men with such capability use it as a way to get into women's pants.
"We meet again…"
A few minutes after I stopped watching Naruto-san, a soft gasp caused me to turn his way. One of the women coming to our stand was looking at him, star-struck. Naruto-san frowned as her eyes began to tear up. He kindly wiped the tears off her face, but he seemed to disprove the girl's appearance.
"Ah, sorry. I have to feed my brother."
"I see. You should have asked someone to come here in your stead."
"She fell ill."
"I see…"
Naruto-san packed up the food silently and gave it to the woman. She bowed gratefully, but Naruto-san casually waved his hand. I watched the woman as she left, wondering what happened between them. I wagered Naruto-san must have done something for her.
"Ah!"
The woman who had just left crashed into a thug and fell. Everyone immediately made a worried look as the tug glared at the woman on the ground.
"S- Sorry!"
"Sorry? Do you think a sorry could fix my broken rib?"
"A broken rib? That is not possible. I am not that strong!"
"Well, you broke my rib, bitch!"
The man pulled back his leg and launched it at the woman's rib. She could only widen her eyes in horror. I was about to use Shunshin to stop the thug when Naruto-san appeared beside the thug, blocking his foot. Surprised, the thug fell on his butt.
"Attack him, quick! Four out of our headquarters are destroyed. The Ninjas are the primary suspects."
That piece of information shocked me. Kakashi-san and I didn't do that. The only one tasked to look for the bandits' hideout was Naruto-san. He must be responsible for that. It was mind-boggling. He didn't clean one but four hideouts in two days. It was no wonder I smelled a hint of iron whenever he returned from his scout.
"Gato has finally decided to move, huh?" Naruto-san mused aloud. "We are going frontal, then."
As the first thug made a move, Naruto-san kicked the head of the thug on the ground, crushing it effortlessly. The thug who was rushing at him was terrified, but he quickly joined his dead friend as Naruto-san stabbed his hand into his chest.
The other thugs seemed to realize the hardships of going against a Shinobi at that moment. They prepared to retreat, but Naruto-san didn't let them. He drew his kunai and cut their necks with a series of swift motions. The place was engulfed in silence until he ran a hand through his hair. Despite the bloody display, the crowd cheered for his bravery.
"Kurenai-san, protect the civilians along with the Genin. Kakashi and I will initiate our plan," he said to me before promptly disappearing.
I turned to Hinata and found her looking at me with a serious look. We immediately left the place and went to Tazuna-san's house. Upon arriving there, we found Sakura slitting a thug's throat with a stiff face. Near her, we found three more lifeless bodies. The thugs were actively aiming for us.
"Ah, Kurenai-sensei," Sakura called as soon as she registered our presence. "You should help Sasuke-kun and the others at the bridge! Kakashi-sensei said that there are a lot of thugs there!"
It was initially only Kiba and Shino were helping the builders on the bridge. Since Sasuke was there too, Kakashi-san must have dropped him there. I briefly wondered why he left the Genin alone if they were surrounded by thugs.
"Hinata, can you help Sakura?" I asked seriously.
"Yes, Sensei," she answered firmly.
Nodding my head, I headed to the bridge. Naruto-san had asked me to protect the civilians, but my priority was still to gather the Genin first before doing that. It made me wonder why he called his fellow Genin like he wasn't a Genin himself.
As soon as I arrived at the bridge, my face contorted slightly. The Genin were fine, but they had a lot of blood on their body. It reminded me of the time when the Genin were required to fight on the battlefield. I quickly killed the thought and went to help them. Apart from Sasuke, they seemed relieved that I did.
"Are you guys all right?" I asked as I stabbed a thug in his neck.
"A bit sick to the stomach, but we are fine," Kiba answered, earning an affirming bark from Akamaru.
"Woof!"
"I am fine. But I think I won't be able to eat meat for a while," Shino answered, looking paler than ever.
Sasuke didn't say anything. With a teammate like Naruto-san, he must be used to killing already. Even Sakura, the weakest, had reacted mildly after killing the thug earlier. Team 7 was comprised of a different breed of Genin.
After a few minutes, we finally finished off the thugs. The bridge was colored in red. Our sandals were wet with blood. As Sasuke stood firmly on the bridge looking around for more enemies, my students leaned on the bridge to catch their breath. They scrunched up their face, looking like they wanted to puke at any time.
"Well, well, well. Aren't you something?"
A raspy voice that I couldn't forget caused my alarm to go off. I turned to the right and found Zabuza walking to us with his aide on his side. I prepared myself for an attack. Zabuza no longer had Kubikiri Bōchō. I should have a chance.
Swish!
"Keuk!"
That thought disappeared from my mind as soon as Zabuza's hand was buried deep into my stomach. Even worse, his aide was facing the Genin.
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Honorary Mention:
B0mbaCl0ckBob
Daoist Mufasa
Deividas Seputis
Florin Durbaca
Jamaul Pryor
Joseph Hollon
Luck George
Luis Fabiano
Zion X
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