A small puddle of water.
Something beyond innocent, yet after hearing Sasuke's words, it suddenly became anything but.
Instantly, everyone except Tazuna, who had no idea what was going on, got ready for a fight.
It was at that very moment that two figures emerged from the puddle, their bodies dripping with water that hadn't been there a moment ago. They were clad in black armor, with clawed gauntlets and breath masks that obscured their faces.
"The Demon Brothers," Kakashi said, his one visible eye narrowing. "This is not good."
"Go, protect the bridge builder," he commanded as he reached for his own weapon.
Sasuke obeyed, but he glanced at Kakashi with suspicion. Because Sasuke knew the Bingo Book; he nearly knew it by heart. Everyone who was anything was listed in that book.
Kakashi was no exception. He was a solid A-rank threat, among the best of the best, and the Demon Brothers before them were C-ranked, and that was combined.
That was a two-rank difference. There was no way they were a threat to Kakashi, so why was he acting like they were bad news?
Still, he did as asked; he joined up with Naruto and Sakura to guard their client, but his red Sharingan never left the two enemies.
While Kakashi had said this was not good, his actions betrayed him. He didn't move, and he didn't seem all that worried.
"Ha, a single Jōnin and three Genin? This is going to be too easy," one of the brothers said as they charged.
Their coordination was good, flawless, yet their intelligence was clearly lacking, as Kakashi was someone far superior to them.
Yet, to the shock and horror of Sakura and Naruto, Kakashi was too slow to act, and he got trapped by the sharp, serrated chain connecting the two brothers before he was brutally and bloodily cut into multiple pieces.
Seeing such a bloody scene and the death of their sensei, both Naruto and Sakura froze, their bodies trembling with fear.
It wasn't until he saw this that Sasuke knew what was happening, why Kakashi was pretending. It was to test those two.
In all honesty, he himself wasn't sure how he would react under such pressure, but sadly, these two fools were nowhere near enough to push him to that point.
Their every action, even Kakashi's every action, was completely visible to his Sharingan.
His substitution with a log, the genjutsu that made it look like he had been killed, even Kakashi, hidden between the trees to their right, everything was laid bare before his eyes.
He knew what Kakashi was testing: their will to protect, and more importantly, to see if Naruto would show any signs of the Kyūbi's power.
This, Sasuke realized, was the real test, not the bell test.
As Naruto stood frozen in fear, one of the brothers turned towards him, Tazuna, and Sakura. "Time to take out the trash," the Demon Brother said as he charged at them.
Sasuke didn't hesitate to act.
Even if this was a test, there was no way he was going to let any harm come to Tazuna. The mission was the mission, and he was not going to fail it.
Suddenly and seemingly without reason, the two brothers changed course, and rather than running towards where the four of them were standing, they charged at one another.
Then, with the same precision and coordination they had used to kill the fake Kakashi, they attacked one another. There was no defense, no attempt to dodge at all.
One moment, they were coming at them; the next, they brutally killed one another, both dying at the same time. Only then, as they dealt one another a lethal blow, did they realize what they had just done.
It was only in the final moments of their lives that they realized they had been trapped in a genjutsu, one that had made them see a different target than the one they had aimed for.
One that had made them kill their own brother.
It was shocking. Everyone was taken aback, even Sasuke, the person who had cast the genjutsu, was surprised and impressed at just how effective it was.
When training, it was never like this, but he also quickly realized the reason for that.
When training, he would do so against Aiko, an Uchiha, or against Hinata or Neji, two members of the Hyūga clan with the Byakugan.
The Hyūga were the bane of all genjutsu; not only could they see when someone was under a genjutsu, but they could also see right through them as if they weren't there.
And Aiko hardly needed mentioning, as it was she who taught him everything he knew about using the Sharingan.
"Wha... what just happened?" Tazuna asked, unable to believe what he had just seen. First, the only adult shinobi had died easily, and then the two enemies who killed him had killed one another?
Even Naruto and Sakura were confused. Both of them had been frozen in fear, and both of them had missed everything. The change in the Demon Brothers' path wasn't something they had seen or noticed.
They both looked at Sasuke, the only person who had reacted, who had not been frozen, and who was now standing there with a look of shock on his own face.
Sasuke didn't have an answer for them. He just looked at the two dead bodies, trying to process what had just happened.
Before he could say anything, Kakashi reappeared, walking out from behind a tree. "Nice work, Sasuke," he said, a small, almost invisible smirk on his face.
"You... you're alive!" Sakura shouted, a look of relief on her face.
"What!? How!? We saw you die!" Naruto asked in surprise, before he looked back to where the dead Kakashi was supposed to be, only to see some broken bits of wood.
"He used the Substitution Jutsu," Sasuke said, finally finding his voice. "He wasn't dead."
"So... you were just testing us?" Sakura asked, a hint of anger in her voice.
"He was testing us," Sasuke confirmed. "And you both failed."
"What!? We didn't do anything!" Naruto protested. "I... I couldn't move."
Sasuke just shook his head. "I know, and that's why you failed."
"Failed? But we passed the test at the academy," Sakura said, not understanding.
"That was different," Kakashi said, finally joining the conversation. "The test at the academy was to see if you had the basic skills to become a shinobi. This test was to see if you have the mentality to be a shinobi. And right now, you don't."
His words hit Naruto and Sakura hard.
They had thought they were shinobi, but they had just failed their first real test.
They had frozen when faced with real danger, and if it wasn't for Sasuke, they would have been killed.
"He's right," Sasuke said. "But don't feel too bad. This is, after all, our first real mission." He tried to reassure them.
"But... you were totally fine..." Naruto mumbled, to which Sakura nodded.
"Sasuke didn't panic because he knew I hadn't died, and because he was strong enough himself. Still, next time, try to keep one alive to interrogate." Kakashi said, giving Sasuke a rare bit of direct praise. "Your genjutsu work was clean."
He didn't mention the fact that he had been about to intervene himself. He had allowed Sasuke to handle it, and he was not disappointed.
He was starting to get a better idea about his students, and that was a good thing.
Still, this also told him that he might have misjudged the mission. These two might be just random missing-nin, but the fact that they were waiting for them, ready to ambush them...
That meant the mission wasn't as simple as it seemed.
So, he had to change plans.
"Tazuna-san," he said, turning to the old man. "We need to talk."
Tazuna, who had been standing there, silent and stunned, finally snapped out of it. "What... what is it?"
"This mission... it's not a simple escort mission, is it?" Kakashi asked, his one visible eye staring intently at the old man. "You're being targeted by someone, someone who is willing to send shinobi after you. And you lied to us. This isn't a C-rank mission. It's at least a B-rank, possibly even an A-rank."
As he spoke, he allowed a tiny amount of his killing intent to leak out, making the man sweat despite suddenly feeling deadly cold. He was a master of it, and even this small amount was enough to make the old man feel like he was staring death in the face.
Even Naruto and Sakura, who were on the same side, felt it and couldn't help but shiver.
Sasuke, on the other hand, wasn't affected at all, as he had a natural resistance to it thanks to the Uchiha bloodline, and Aiko had made him endure far worse.
But even he had to admit, Kakashi was good.
"I... I don't know what you're talking about," Tazuna said, though he was clearly lying.
"Don't lie to me," Kakashi said, his voice cold and hard. "We almost died because of your lies. If you want our protection, you have to tell us the truth. Otherwise, we'll turn back right now."
The threat was clear, and it was a threat that Tazuna couldn't ignore. He needed their protection, and he knew it.
"Alright, alright, I'll tell you," he said, defeated. "But please, you have to help me. If you don't, I'm going to die," he pleaded.
"We'll decide that after we hear the truth," Kakashi said, not letting him off the hook.
Tazuna took a deep breath. "The man who is after me is a very dangerous man, a man named Gatō."
"Gatō? The shipping magnate?" Kakashi asked, surprised. He had heard of him.
"Yes, him," Tazuna said. "But he isn't just a shipping magnate. In truth, he deals in all manners of illegal dealings, such as smuggling and blackmail."
"He has taken over the entire shipping industry in the Land of Waves, and he's using it to control the country, to strangle its economy, and to make its people suffer."
"And I'm building a bridge, a bridge that will connect the Land of Waves to the mainland, and that will break his monopoly. That's why he wants me dead."
"So he hired those two to kill you?" Kakashi asked.
"Yes," Tazuna said. "And I'm sure he'll send more, much more, if he finds out I'm still alive."
Sasuke couldn't help but feel a bit of respect for the old man. He was just a bridge builder, but he was willing to stand up to a man like Gatō, to risk his life for the sake of his country.
But even then, he had lied about the difficulty of his mission, and that was taboo.
"Then why didn't you say so? Based on what you said, this mission was judged to be C-rank. If you had said the truth, they would have given it a higher rank and sent a stronger team," Kakashi asked, despite having guessed the answer. Still, he wanted Tazuna to say it.
"Because... because my country is poor," Tazuna said, his voice filled with shame. "We don't have the money to pay for a B-rank or an A-rank mission. I knew it was a risk, but I had to take it. I had to take it for the sake of my people."
Naruto and Sakura listened, their expressions a mix of shock and sympathy. They were starting to understand the gravity of the situation.
Kakashi was silent for a long moment, his one visible eye looking off into the distance, as if weighing his options.
"We should turn back," he finally said, causing Tazuna to look at him in horror. "The mission parameters have changed. We aren't equipped for an A-rank mission, and it's against protocol to continue."
"No! You can't!" Tazuna pleaded. "Please, you have to help me! You're our only hope!"
"I'm sorry, Tazuna-san," Kakashi said, his tone unwavering.
Tazuna looked at him, then at the three Genin, and he saw the conflict in their eyes, especially in Naruto's.
"Please," he begged, his voice breaking.
(End of chapter)
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