The Purple Flash of Kumo Chapter 40 (New People) (Patreon)

I added a Rangiku Scene at the End.

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Despite introducing each other to the other team, they had yet to exchange any words. Their Sensei had told them to keep their distance from the Konoha team until he was sure they wouldn't attack them.

Naruto kept a close eye on them. The pink-haired girl didn't seem like much, but he figured she wasn't strong from how she often flinched whenever a sound echoed in the woods. Perhaps this was all just an act to make them think she was weak, but whatever the case, he knew better than to underestimate his opponent.

The boy with pale skin like milk, his face twisted into a fake smile, was annoying Naruto the most. But he knew the boy was probably the strongest of the Konoha Genins. The way he often glanced at them was subtle, but Naruto could see him doing that every now and then. His posture was better than that of the others, except Kakashi, who always stood with an air of confidence and experience.

Then was the one named Sasuke Uchiha. Naruto didn't know much about him other than that Itachi Uchiha had slaughtered his entire clan. He felt a bit sympathetic towards him; after all, losing your entire family within a night would be devastating for everyone. But still, if they tried to harm them, Naruto would defend his friends as always.

I just hope it doesn't end with us needing to kill them, Naruto thought, still remembering his last encounter with Team 10 of Konoha. From all the genins, he only still remembered Shikamaru; that one had been quite a smart one and had almost gotten the better of him. If things had been different, Naruto knew they could have been friends. He had tried not to show mercy, to complete the mission without any problems, all because he wanted to please his grandfather and father.

Naruto felt a bitter taste at the thought of them. The words of his grandfather still echoing in his ears.

' "....What were you going to do to her?"

"You don't want to know that, Naruto." Ay answered. '

"You okay, Naruto?" Omoi's voice pulled him out of his thoughts as he stared blankly forward, with Yugito looking at him with concern.

"I—I don't know," Naruto answered sincerely before shaking Omoi's hand off his shoulder.

"We're here," Tazuna announced, his voice carrying the weariness of their long journey as they all reached the top of the small hill. The town of Wave lay before them.

"This place is beautiful!" Sakura exclaimed in awe, her eyes wide as she gazed down at the village. Her hand formed an umbrella for her eyes as she tried to take in every detail.

Sasuke didn't seem to have a reaction, while the pale one was busy writing something in his notebook.

"First time outside the village?" Darui questioned as they walked down the hill, Kakashi taking breaks every now and then. From the way he breathed heavily, it was clear that he was exhausted.

"Indeed." He answered a little breathless before turning his head to look at the other Jonin. "What about your genins, from their reaction? I can tell this isn't the first time outside of Kumo?" Kakashi questioned as they reached the foot of the hill. The air was crisp and cool, carrying the sound of a nearby sea. Sakura ran past them, the sound of her footsteps echoing on the rocky path, pulling out a long metallic bottle from her bag and kneeling in front of a natural fountain, filling it up with cold water.

Darui watched as the girl ran back to them, her wariness towards him was palpable, before handing the water bottle to Kakashi.

"Here, Sensei." the girl said as she handed him the bottle.

Kakashi opened the bottle, drinking as much as he could. Once he was done, he closed the bottle and handed it back to Sakura. "Thank you, Sakura," He said, a small smile playing on his lips. The girl rejoined her teammates.

"It's not the first time my team is outside, but we are not usually this far from Kumo. Most of our missions are inside the borders," Darui said with a dull voice as they followed Tazuna towards a house. This one seemed a little different from the others in the town. It was fully painted, had two floors, a small fountain outside, and included a sports ball—perhaps it belonged to a child.

"Same here, but we got this mission from Tazuna to help him rebuild the bridge," Kakashi said, watching Darui closely. What he was revealing about his own missions was necessary to know if their team and Kumo Team would need to clash. If their missions wouldn't clash with one another, then there was nothing to worry about.

Kakashi knew from personal experience that fighting Teams from other Villages was something many tried to avoid; the less bad blood a village had with another, the better. But Kakashi couldn't help but glance at the blonde boy behind Darui, the Black Panther.

Kakashi knew there was a chance all this was a coincidence, and maybe it was. Since people from Kumo generally had blonde hair, at least half of the population had blonde hair, so there was a high chance this kid wasn't the one he thought, but the name.

Naruto, Kakashi repeated the name under his breath. It was the same name that Minato-Sensei's son would have, and the more he looked at the boy, the more he looked like Minato.

Am I losing my mind here? Kakashi wondered out loud at himself. He didn't know if this was really the one he thought he was, but if this was really Naruto, then he would need to report back to Hokage as soon as possible. As much as he wanted to, he knew it would be very dangerous to try and get Naruto with force.

After all, Darui, on its own, was a huge obstacle, and not counting his Genins, who would undoubtedly try to help him. And Kakashi didn't need to see them fight to know that his Genins wouldn't stand a chance against the Kumo Genins. Sai might be able to hold them for a bit, but Kakashi still wasn't sure if he could really defeat Darui if it came down to it.

I need to wait for now, Kakashi quickly decided.

"Rebuilding the bridge you say, huh. Our mission needs us to have Tazuna sign a contract. It seems our missions have no reason to clash. You can help him build the bridge, my team can even help to keep guard on him. Once the bridge is done. He will sign the contract and we both go our separate ways. Sounds like a good deal. What do you say? Momentarily Allies?" Darui questioned with a blank look as he extended his hand towards Kakashi.

Kakashi looked at the hand for a brief moment, contemplating his choices, and then realized that his Genins were still not strong enough.

"Momentarily Allies." Kakashi agreed, shaking Darui's hand with a nod before turning his head to look at his Genins following him behind.

"It's alright. We are allies for now." Kakashi shouted. Sakura's shoulders slumped down in relief, and Darui said the same thing to his team.

As they finally reached Tazuna's house, the old man knocked on the door.

"Tsunami, come out. It's me. I have returned." Tazuna's voice was accompanied by the sound of his fist on the door. They all heard multiple footsteps, and the door opened with force.

"Grandpa!" The boy's cry was filled with a mixture of joy and relief as he threw himself at Tazuna's waist. Following closely behind the boy was a woman who they all figured must be Tsunami.

Tsunami, with her long, dark blue hair, was a beautiful sight. She was wearing a short-sleeved pink shirt with the end of the sleeves and the collar being red in colour, and a long blue skirt, her usual attire.

"Father, it's so good to see you again. Inari has missed you." The woman said with a sigh of relief, hugging the old man before noticing the group of people behind him.

"Who are you? Don't get any closer!" The boy's voice, filled with a mix of fear and loathing, echoed through the air, revealing his true emotions despite his attempt to sound brave.

"Inari, behave nicely to our guests." Tazuna quickly scolded the boy before pushing him back, so he stood before them. He grabbed his hat, pressing it against his chest.

"Forgive my grandson," Tazuna apologized before turning to look at his daughter. Tsunami, prepare a dinner for our guests. They are all Shinobis here to help us."

The woman looked relieved, her eyes glittering with joy, but not the boy. The boy huffed, glaring at them for a moment before running inside.

"Please, come in," the woman said warmly, opening the door wide for them as they all walked inside one after the other. They walked straight into a short hallway with a set of stairs leading to the second floor and a cupboard door under the stairs. The walls were worn out, and the paint had cracked in several places. Omoi was sure he could smell mushrooms from the corners of the walls where mold spots had grown, blackening the walls.

Turning right, Naruto walked inside and found a place to sit in the common room. He watched as the Sensei of the Konoha team walked upstairs after Tsunami told him where he could rest.

"So, what is it like in Kumo?" Only now did they notice the pink-haired girl had sat across from them with Sasuke and the pale-skinned boy, who was still wearing that annoying smile on his face.

Naruto really didn't like the way he was smiling. It was so obviously fake that he wondered who this guy even thought he was fooling with that smile. It was bizarre and annoying, but since they were on different teams, he knew he couldn't attack him without causing a problem, so for now, he just decided to try and ignore him.

"Ahh, well, it's high. Kumo is built on top of hills. So it can be a little difficult to breathe for someone who has never lived there." Omoi answered casually, not really bothering with not telling how Kumo is as a place since you can find where the village is built in many different books.

Omoi could not understand why they were called hidden villages since it was quite common knowledge where these villages were located. Even a civilian could buy a book in the library that had information on where one could find the Five Known Hidden Villages. The only village that he knew was actually well hidden was the Waterfall Village near the Fire Country Territory; no one really knew where it was located.

Naruto watched as Darui walked up to Tazuna, talking with him in a hushed tone and giving him the letter the Raikage had given him. The blonde felt a bitter taste in his mouth as he watched the man read the letter, a growing concerned look in his eyes.

"Naruto, you okay?" Yugito asked tenderly, nudging his shoulder.

"I'm fine, Yugito. Just thinking about...everything." Naruto said slowly, his voice quivering. Yugito placed her hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him.

"I'm here for you, Naruto." She reminded him tenderly, and he grasped her hand with his, their fingers slowly interfering.

"Thank you," Naruto said with a hushed tone, and it seemed the night would go without much trouble. Darui was busy talking with Tazuna, perhaps trying to convince him to sign the deal.

Naruto knew that signing the deal would mean that the Wave Country would now belong to Kumo. As such, Wave Country would need to send ten percent of its yearly earnings to Kumo for protection and ten percent to the Lightning Daimyō.

"Sasuke is our best Genin." Naruto heard the pink-haired girl say with a bright blush on her face, pointing at the boy who barely acknowledged her words. The blonde could see he seemed proud of the words he was hearing, so Naruto decided to say his own piece.

"So you are a Uchiha, right? I heard a lot about your clan. My condolences for what happened to them." Naruto could see Sasuke seemed genuinely caught off guard that someone from another village said that; before his eyes narrowed, growing anger in his eyes, almost like a fire trying to engulf everything.

"How do you know that?"

"We might be from Kumo, but what happened to the Uchiha Clan has spread everywhere. I'm sure even Yassei has heard about it, spread from traders. Something like that doen't stay hidden for long, especially when the killer is—" Naruto placed his hand on her shoulder, stopping Yugito from speaking further about the Uchiha clan. And it was clear this was making the Genin quite angry.

"For how long have you been Genins? And did you have a Genin Exam from your Jonin like we did?" The white skin boy asked with a neutral voice, so neutral that one would think a rock was talking.

"Why do you care?" Naruto asked back at him with an annoyed look at the boy. "If you tell us for long you have been Genins, and what kind of exam from your Jonin you passed, we might do the same." Naruto continued with a slight smirk, ignoring the look he was getting from Omoi, almost telling him that he should just ignore the boy.

The white-skinned boy lost his smile for a brief moment before smiling back, the same fake smile. "Alright, we have been Genins for—OAUGHHH!" "What the hell are you doing, Sai? You are not supposed to say that," the girl named Sakura shouted while closing his mouth with her hand, glaring down at the boy.

Naruto found them rather odd but entertaining when he noticed the look he got from Sasuke, an intense look.

"What are you looking at?"

"Fight Me."

"Huh!!" Naruto said, caught off guard by his request. This made Omoi and Yugito narrow their eyes, prepared to protect their teammate, while Naruto remained calm as he stared back at Sasuke.

"You want me to fight you?"

"Yes. Your friend said that you were the strongest Genin of Kumo. So I want to see how well I can do against someone like you." Sasuke claimed, briefly pointing at Omoi.

Naruto knew he was powerful, but he was sure Samui and Yugito could give him quite a close fight... But nonetheless, he wasn't here to fight, especially a moron like him. He was the Heir of the Uchiha Clan and the last one left. Naruto didn't need to be a genius to know that Konoha wouldn't take kindly to them if Sasuke was harmed in any way.

"No."

"What?!"

"You heard me. In case you didn't read the guide book. We are teams from different Villages, and our Jonins just formed a temporary alliance, which means no blood should be spilled. If you want to fight so badly, then we can do that only if our Jonins come to an agreement." Naruto answered with a formal voice, hoping this would make Sasuke back off, but that was wishful thinking.

"Heh, what a fancy way to say that you're scared." Sasuke mocked him with an annoying smile.

"...That trick might work on a five year old, but looking at you now. I wouldn't be surprised if five years olds are the only ones you challenge to make yourself feel good." Naruto rebunked with a blank look as Sasuke seethed in anger.

"He's right dickless. A smart man will know when to pick a fight, so be a good boy, and—" "Shut Up, Sai." Sasuke shouted angrily at him before turning to face Naruto.

A pair of Sharingans looked back at Naruto. The blonde could see Sasuke's Sharingan was imperfect; the one on the right had two tomoe, and the other only had one tomoe.

Omoi and Yugito quickly tensed up, ready to fight, when someone cleared his throat near them, looming over the two teams. They all fell silent.

"Naruto. Is there any problem here?" Darui questioned, his eyes lingering on them.

"Not much, just Sasuke here trying to eat more than he could chew." Naruto mused with a snarky smile.

Sasuke growled, trying to stand up, only to stop when Sakura pushed him against the chair, giving him a look to stop.

"I see. " Darui said slowly before turning to face the Konoha team. "Your Jonin make a Temporary Alliance with us. If you are so into getting beaten up, then there's Inari upstairs. I'm sure he's enough of a challenge for you, but try to mess with my team again, and the Temporary Alliance Deal is off the table." Darui threatened with a cold look.

Sakura almost fainted, while Sasuke clenched his teeth in anger before looking away, deactivating his Sharingan. Sai was the only one who didn't seem affected.

"We understand, Jonin of Kumo. We won't bother your team again." Sai promised with a blank voice.

Darui said nothing and motioned for his students to follow him outside.

MEANWHILE - ELSEWHERE

"Damn that Kakashi. It's been a while since I fought someone that strong." Zabuza said while limping.

"Are you alright, Zabuza-sama?" The 'Hunter-Ninja' asked

"I'm fine, Haku. I just need some rest." Zabuza said as he laid himself on a bed while the hunter ninja placed a blanket over him."

"I'm sorry...if I had joined the fight earlier..." The now-identified Haku tried to apologize but was interrupted.

"I told you, that I can handle it myself. You did what you were told, and stayed put. So I can't be mad at you for that." Zabuza said.

"Well, in the meantime, I'll go find some herbs and medicine to help you recover faster. It will take a while for your nerves to fully heal." Haku said.

"Good. And remember to...""Tell anyone I encounter that I'm a boy. I know. I still don't understand why I have to do that though, Zabuza-sama." Haku asked with her monotone voice.

"This world is full of Degenerates, Haku. And our current employer is the biggest one of them all. By saying those three words alone, you will scare them away immediately." Zabuza said with a surprisingly fatherly tone, which did not go unnoticed.

"Very well. Thank you for your concern, Zabuza-sama." Haku said with a gentle smile.

"I'm just making sure that you don't draw any unwanted attention to yourself. That is all." Zabuza said as he closed his eyes.

"Very well. I'll be back soon." Haku said as she got up from her chair and headed to her room to change into her civilian clothes.

"...Be safe, Haku." Zabuza said under his breath, with a bit of concern in his voice, for his surrogate daughter.

Later

Returning back to Zabuza-sama, opening the door, she noticed he was sleeping in his bed, closing the door behind her. Zabuza's eyes opened immediately, his eyes relaxed at seeing Haku in front of him, and his face took a serious look.

"What took you so long?" Zabuza asked, knowing this shouldn't have taken so long, it wasn't the first time he was injured.

"I meet one of the Shinobi of Kumo," Haku immediately answered; Zabuza raised a nonexistent eyebrow at her answer, expecting that she must have surely taken care of the brat or, at the very least, paralyzed him.

"Kumo? Where did they come from?"

"I don't know Zabuza-Sama, but the kid was friendly with me."

"Friendly?" Zabuza said the word with disbelief.

"He helped me to find herbs for you, but then he gave me this letter," Haku continued, grabbing the letter from her pocket and handing it to Zabuza, who looked perplexed.

"Who gave this to you?"

"It was a new Shinobi, not part of the group that attacked you," Haku explained, keeping an emotionless tone; her mask was on her face.

Zabuza didn't like this one bit; he didn't know how powerful these Shinobis from Kumo could be. The possibility of losing was looming over him like a noose. He knew Kakashi himself was strong enough to be a challenge, but now there were two Jonin.

As he thought of that, he opened the paper and read the letter; his eyes widened before turning to Haku, who hid her surprised face behind the mask.

"Who gave you this?" Zabuza demanded; it had been a long time, and he wondered who this Kumo Shinobi could have this map.

"Naruto Yotsuki told me the Raikage was willing to offer us shelter and even help us in the future to get rid of the Mizukage," Haku explained, remembering the words and wondering why Kumo would care to help them.

Looking at the paper again, Zabuza turned his head at Haku, still wearing the bloody mask.

"Take the mask off, Haku. You don't have to hide your face from me," Zabuza said with a small hint of sadness, but his firm voice concealed it well.

Haku said nothing but removed the mask and put it on the table nearby.

"We will continue with our plan. I will talk with this kid. Let's see where this goes," Zabuza ordered, Haku nodding in understanding.

"Haku, if you see things... going downhill, I want you to leave,"

The day went ahead, and Haku checked him every now and then to make sure he was getting better.

"You have been quiet ever since you met that boy in the forest. What did he do to give you such an impression?" Zabuza asked.

"I don't know...but he was strong...and kind. Zabuza-sama...are you sure we should do this job? For someone like Gato?" Haku asked her surrogate father.

"You already know WHY we are doing this, Haku. Gato is a worm, but his money is green. And we need it if we're going to fund the rebellion against Yagura and that piece of shit Water Daimyo. Then again, I don't mind killing that fat scum and just take all his money...but lucky for him, I still have my reputation to uphold." Zabuza said with both pride and disgust in his voice.

"I understand, Zabuza-sama," Haku said sadly. Speaking of the worm, Gato enters through their front door with a huge, smug face. Haku quickly put on the mask. Behind him are his two samurai bodyguards and an unknown figure.

"Well, well, so much for the Demon of the Hidden Mist. I hear you got your ass kicked by a bunch of brats," Gato said with a grin.

"Watch your mouth, Gato. They got lucky. They won't be next time." Zabuza said with a bit of anger in his voice.

"Heh whatever you say. But I hear they have back-up now. And as much I want to see you make a fool out of yourself again, I have a business to run. And that Bridge will cost me this country. That is why I hired this guy as your back-up." Gato introduces Zabuza and Haku to the unknown figure. He appears to be a Shinobi.

"I have to say, Zabuza-Senpai, you are not really living-up to your title anymore," the unknown figure said with a smug smile.

Zabuza just stared daggers at the man. "What are you doing here, Raiga? This is my job," Zabuza asked, who happened to know the unknown figure.

"And now it is mine too. Don't worry, Senpai, I'm not here to step on your toes. Consider me as a way for you to even out the odds against the Konoha Shinobis. Plus, it is good to finally work with a fellow Seven-Ninja Swordsman again." The now-identified Raiga Kurosuki said.

Raiga had blue eyes with a darker ripple around the pupil, waist-length green hair with the top two bangs falling down on his cheeks on each side, and dark, full lips. He is also carrying a pair of unique swords attached to his sides.

"Hmph whatever...just don't get in my way," Zabuza ordered.

"Oh I won't dream of it." Raiga said with a large grin.

Haku then notices a large bag on Raiga's back. And it is moving. "What is that on your back Raiga-san?" Haku asked.

"That's...not important. Shall we go now Senpai?" Raiga said, hoping to change the subject.

"Fine, but I have a score to settle with Kakashi. You can deal with the other Jonin. Haku can handle the brats." Zabuza ordered.

"Well I hope you enjoy this little reunion, because I'm not paying you two to socialize. Now, go show me why they call you two the Demon and Thunder of the Hidden Mistalready." Gato ordered.

"If I were you, I would stop testing my patience, Gato. Haku, Raiga, let's go," Zabuza ordered, leading the two to the bridge construction site and their pending battleground.

While Haku and the two Mist Swordsmen leave the confines of their hideout, Gato couldn't help but smirk when they left.

"As soon as the Konoha Shinobis, Zabuza, and Raiga are weakened, I want you to kill them all. I'm not wasting a cent on those grunts. But I want the bitch that broke my arm. She will make a fine bed slave." Gato said with a perverted grin.

"Umm, boss, isn't he a man?" one of his samurai bodyguards asked with a raised eyebrow, hoping their boss was not sexually confused.

"You idiots! She obviously lied. Besides, she's too pretty to be a guy. And I'm going to make her scream like a bitch. Mark my words, boys, before this day is over, this backwater country will be completely under my thumb again." Gato declared with a sinister grin.

Yassei - Rangiku 

"Why do we need to sail to the Elemental Nations?" Rangiku couldn't help but ask as she poured herself a cup of whiskey.

"Oh, come on. Young Lady, where is your sense of adventure?" the old woman asked as she raised her bottle of wine in victory before drinking as much as she could.

"Right here, where I'm living, why would I want to go to the Elemental Nations? Is just full of Shinobis, and is far more dangerous." Rangiku continued as she drank the shot of whiskey.

"That might be true, but you see. This is more than just a normal tourist visit. We will search for something important there," the old woman said with a greedy look as she threw the now-empty bottle of wine against the wall, shattering it into hundreds of pieces.

This quickly earned Rangiku's attention as she looked up at the old hag. She knew the old hag had many secrets. Somehow, she was always able to know things that happened far away. Rangiku didn't know how she did that, and the old hag refused to tell her anything.

"What are we looking for?"

"This one," the old woman said with a wide smile. Pulling out a scroll that was between her pants and shirt, she flattened the scroll on the table, revealing the drawing of a sword.

"A Sword? Is that what you are looking for, but aren't you too old for that?" She questioned with disbelief, looking back up at her old face. From the rumors she had heard, the old hag had been a pretty capable swordswoman during her youth, and many described her as having crimson hair like blood but one night. She turned into this, within a single night; from a young woman, she turned into an old hag that one would think is over a hundred years old, but Rangiku had often seen her carrying heavy things, so she knew this old hag wasn't exactly defenseless.

"Ahh, Rangiku, you disapoint me. What have I always taught you?"

"To see underneath the underneath," Rangiku answered, a little exasperated, before taking a second look at the sword drawn on the sheet of paper. At first glance, it seemed like any other normal sword until she noticed the symbol on the sword's guard.

"Wait this is an Uzumaki Sword." Rangiku said in disbelief, knowing their swords were rare, and only the very best swordsman in the entire Yassei carried around Uzumaki Swords.

"That's right. But not just any sword, my dear; this one is the Immortal Blade. The Most Powerful Sword in the World. The one that to this day holds the souls of thousands of people that it killed."

"Holds the souls?" Rangiku said slowly, feeling a surge of fear at the thought of such a sword. She knew all Uzumaki swords had special abilities but holding souls. That didn't sound like something she wanted to have in her hands.

"Yes, my dear. The more souls it holds, the more powerful the swords become. It is said that to make this sword, The Uzumaki Clan sacrificed one thousand people to the Seal that made this Sword possible." Rangiku could not believe what she was hearing as far as she knew. The Uzumaki Clan were known as peaceful people. Yet before she could utter a word, everyone throughout the city heard the sound of the alarm coming from the castle, Skytower.

They all knew what was coming, and everyone outside quickly ran back inside their homes; the children ran as fast as possible, knowing what would happen if they were caught outside.

"Underground now." The Old Hag ordered Rangiku as she opened the door of the ground door that led to a tunnel that went one hundred meters deep.

Rangiku watched from the window as the sky surrounding the entire continent of Yassei slowly turned golden. Without thinking, she jumped down, and the old hag closed the door, following her.

Everyone who lived in Yassei knew to stay underground when the sky turned Gold...

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