"You're joking, right?!"
"Lord Hokage, please tell me that you're not allowing Sasuke Uchiha to leave this village for a mission…"
"I can and I have…Kakashi thinks that his team is ready so I've decided to let them try cutting their teeth on a C-Rank Mission…It's not even an especially hard one to begin with so please do not worry." Hiruzen Sarutobi explained as he saw the Konoha Council once again siding against his decisions; Homura and Koharu had been part of the Second Hokage's team and as such, this made them more draconian in their decision making.
"Being worried is one thing, Hiruzen but we cannot allow the last bearer of the Uchiha bloodline to fall under any harm if we wish to maintain some level of control in regards to military power." The bespectacled man explained as he looked to the pipe smoking Hokage. "Since the Nine Tailed Fox has been killed during the attack on the Hidden Leaf years ago, Sasuke Uchiha is probably one of the few in the Village who has the potential to become one of our best once he becomes a Chunin…Or even further as a Jonin."
"You are thinking too far ahead…These children have barely been Genin for more than a few weeks and you want to start keeping them caged up and trained as attack dogs for the village?" Sarutobi asked them with a bemused expression, over the years since he maintained his tenure as Hokage; He had been used to their rather cutthroat decision making which wasn't helped whenever Danzo made his appearance and opinions known. "Besides; You still forget that Sasuke is not the sole survivor and heir in this…Ryōga Uchiha is also a perfectly viable Ninja on his own and from what I've been told from his teachers, he is just as capable as Sasuke is."
The elderly woman scoffed as she looked to her Hokage; "Even you know the stories and rumours about that young whelp…Sasuke Uchiha has the better claim to the Clan than him."
"You have to understand, Sarutobi…The fact is that Sasuke Uchiha already demonstrated the ability to awaken the Sharingan as stated by witnesses who found him…Ryōga Uchiha has not." Danzo Shimura pointed out as he tapped his cane; "What good is a child who can't even utilise their own bloodline and who abhors to even engage in Taijutsu to defend themself?"
The Third Hokage felt his body tense; He was pulled into this meeting to discuss both Uchihas' safety on missions but it had once again devolved into Ryōga being subjected to the most meaningless of mudslinging. "I can assure you that bloodline traits may make someone strong but they are not everything!" Hiruzen snapped as he glared at the three; "In case you have forgotten, there is a reason why the young man has such an aversion."
"Oh yes, the story that made every Jonin and adult pity him…" Koharu admitted; "The so-called "Hell Training" that he had been put through at the hands of Soichiro Uchiha."
"If you know about it then I would have expected you to have some form sympathy for the boy, not disdain…" The Third Hokage sniped at the trio. "Regardless of clan and blood, no child or his siblings should have gone through what they did…"
"Parents put their children through strict training all the time, Sarutobi…It happened with the previous Hokage and with Clans for as long as you can remember, why should this be a distinction just because they are a child…." Danzo mentioned; "As far as I recall, Soichiro used to be the Uchiha's trailblazer; Becoming a Chunin at the age of 12 and an Anbu Captain by 15….For his own child to be trained with such prestige, he should be grateful for the opportunity…Despite his father being outdone by a child."
"What Ryōga was put through wasn't strict training, Danzo…I mean, for Kami's sake; This boy was put through high intensity combat drills when he was too young and too low a rank to learn!" Hiruzen argued, flabbergasted and outright frustrated at the Council's apathy along with Danzo's clear dismissal; "If the Uchiha Clan Massacre didn't happen in time then it would have been his own father's expectations that killed him!"
"But he didn't…" Koharu stepped in; "It was unfortunate that they had to witness such a thing but it was because of his older cousin's pity that Ryōga Uchiha even had a possibility of surviving that night…Not because of will or vengeance…"
——Meanwhile, on the outskirts of Konoha——
"So I pony up money for a C-Rank and I get stuck with the Brat Pack and their babysitter? Some escort…" The drunken Tazuna grumbled as he walked with Team 7; Everyone wasn't safe from the Bridge Builder's griping and had to settle with it all the way from the Village, Sasuke was trying every trick he could to not hit the old man, Sakura was too focused on trying to walk alongside Sasuke for all the close time that she could get while Ryōga who had been used to these kinds of things being said was tuning them out while trying to memorise the signs for a new Jutsu that he found in his Earth Scroll.
"Mr. Tazuna, my team may be young but they are very competent at what it is that they do." Kakashi reminded Tazuna as he kept up the closer watch since he was the Jonin in charge.
Ryōga kept an eye out for anything out of place but something felt off and he couldn't exactly tell what it was. Before it was a puddle of water on the very outskirt of the Village even though it hadn't rained; This was what brought two Hidden Mist Chunin known as the Demon Brothers jumped out to surprise attack and kill Tazuna with Sasuke taking one down very quickly while Ryōga froze up, though he quickly changed up too when Sasuke called him a coward and the other Uchiha had been triggered into breaking the other Chunin's arm with a vice lock and pinned him with a grapple that even Kakashi had to raise his eyebrow about.
"Interesting...I just thought Ryōga was below average in Taijutsu but that was textbook perfect, though I am going to have to ask him to verify where he learned an ANBU level of combat skill." Kakashi mused to himself but decided to approach the elephant in the room. "Mr. Tazuna…These two Chunin came at you with clear intent…Is there something that you'd like to tell us?" He asked with a clear tone that this was something that the Bridge Builder should come clean about.
After Tazuna explained everything from Gato's stranglehold on the town he was building the bridge for and the reason why he lied in order to get a more affordable ranked mission. "I'm sorry for lying to you…But I didn't have any other choice and my village desperately needs your help." Tazuna begged them as he got on his knees.
Kakashi was of two minds; On one hand Tazuna lied to them and his first instinct as a Jonin was to call it off and turn back. On the other hand however was the need to see the mission through, he did pay them for a mission after all even if he lied about it. "Sasuke, Sakura, Ryōga…Right now you three have a decision to make; Either we turn back and explain the situation which means that this goes to someone else." He explained as he saw the mixed look of emotion on their faces…Well, on Sakura's anyway. "or we carry this out, but I have to warn you that with this new information and the risk surrounding it…This is now an A-Rank Mission."
Everyone was quiet once they heard the news; An A-Rank was normally reserved for a stronger team but Ryōga was the first to step forward. "I say we go on, we've come this far to ensure this guy goes back to his village and I'm not gonna back down just because it's a harder mission…I refuse to be a coward." Ryōga stated resolutely and sporting a fierce look that made him look like the Uchiha he was born to become.
Sasuke hated to be the one to admit it but his cousin had the right idea; "If we go back, someone else will swindle the old guy…I'll go mainly because I don't trust the dud to do anything right if he goes alone."
Sakura meanwhile felt a shiver up her spine when she saw Ryōga like that and for the briefest of moments, she felt herself blush a little when she actually thought he looked cool. "I-I'll go too! Sasuke will need my backup so I'll be there to help him with anything he needs!" She piped up. "DAMN RIGHT, I'M GOING! I REFUSE TO LET SASUKE GO ALONE AND LEAVE ME BEHIND!"
Kakashi felt a smile grow as they decided to continue on and caught a boat from the Land of Fire into the Land of Waves to keep under the radar of any person who was working for Gato.
"Almost there…All we have to do is cross over into the next town and we'll-" Tazuna mentioned but he was cut off when Sakura decided to try testing herself.
"THERE!" She yelled out as she threw a kunai into the bushes without warning anyone else and putting them all on guard.
"Sakura, those are Kunai knives! They're too dangerous to throw around randomly!" Kakashi reprimanded her as he kept watching around nearby Tazuna.
"But I thought I sensed something here, just in the bushes lo-" Sakura pled her case but felt like an idiot when she saw a rabbit in the bushes and the kunai she threw was inches above it's head.
"What are you doing?! We're not hunting rabbits!" Ryōga yelled as he knelt in front of the white rabbit to examine it; "Okay, it's not injured…I think you just spooked it…" He mentioned as he looked it over but then felt something icy shoot through his veins, "Kakashi-sensei….I think something's wrong….I think someone used this rabbit as a Body Substitution."
"For a cute lil bunny? Who'd be so heartless to do it…" Sakura mentioned as she lightly pet the white furred rabbit since Ryōga helped to calm it down a little. "Besides, what makes you think that this rabbit would be a part of an attack?"
"If it was a normal rabbit then I'd be as lost as you…But this is a snow rabbit, they don't look like this in the spring time….." Ryōga pointed out as he let down the rabbit, he was starting to feel on edge as he glanced around.
"He's right, Snow rabbits only have their white coats during winter, whoever did this kept the rabbit indoors or somewhere that it'd keep it's colour…" Kakashi could barely finish his thought as he pushed Tazuna to the ground and every ounce of him went on high alert. "EVERYONE DUCK! NOW!"
Sasuke was quick to drop while Ryōga helped to push Sakura down so she wouldn't get hit by the rapidly approaching blade that sank into the wood.
Standing on top of the giant sword's handle was a tall grey skinned man with a Hidden Mist headband on. "So…You caught on quick…As I expected from someone as proficient as you, Kakashi Hatake…" The man remarked as he climbed off and landed on the ground to grab his sword. "Though you bring children here with you?"
Kakashi narrowed his one visible eye as he recognised the ninja in front of him; "The Demon of the Hidden Mist…Zabuza Momochi, if you're here then that means you've been paid to come after Tazuna…"
"An honor to be addressed by my full name from the likes of you…And yes, I've been contracted for the bridge builder's head. So make it easier on yourself and hand him over, otherwise you'll just be putting those kids in danger." Zabuza stated bluntly as he rested the giant sword over his shoulders.
"You shouldn't underestimate them if I were you, Zabuza…Because even the weakest can surprise you if you're not careful." Kakashi warned him as he lifted his headband up to expose his other eye with the Sharingan; Surprising the two Uchiha boys when they saw their heritage glimmering.
"A-A Sharingan…How does Kakashi have that?" Ryōga muttered as he gripped his kunai and kept on the defensive.
"He's not even an Uchiha…How the hell does he have something that belongs to my clan…Unless…Is he an Uchiha too?!" Sasuke was practically fuming as he was starting to suspect that someone like Kakashi was skilled enough to be one. However he wasn't keen on being left out of the fight as he was ready to jump in but Kakashi threw a hand out behind him as he kept his eyes firmly on Zabuza.
"Stay back, the three of you! Protect Tazuna, he is your number one priority right now!" Kakashi ordered as he and the Kirigakure missing-nin vanished into a thick mist.
"Okay, we need to make this right, Sasuke…You and Sakura both use your Jutsu as a deterrent while I use my Earth Style as a way to bolster a shelter…" Ryōga tried to issue a plan while Kakashi was trying to fight off Zabuza.
"You really think I'll just play along to a plan you pull out?" Sasuke snorted derisively, "I say we hit that sword guy with what we have and weaken him for a kill…"
"I'm with Sasuke, we can't just sit here and do nothing…We have to do something!" Sakura agreed as she pulled some shuriken out of her pouch.
"The priority is to protect Tazuna, that guy Kakashi's fighting looks like a Jonin at a minimum…." Ryōga pointed out as he then looked to Sasuke and then to the clashing Jonin. "Alright, I think I have an idea…"
While the three discussed a plan, Kakashi was going through a back and forth with Zabuza by dispatching Clone Jutsu after Clone Jutsu like a Ninja Cat and Mouse. "You're going to run out of Chakra if you carry on like this…Then how will you fight back?" Zabuza taunted as he then raised his giant sword.
"Simple…I know that at some point during this fight, you're going to slip up…" Kakashi remarked as he then dashed forward with a pair of clones to layer on hits, but in the corner of his eye; He saw Ryōga and Sasuke weaving handsigns, "Those two…I thought I told them to hold back….Though I guess I can't say I couldn't use the help." The Real Kakashi then went low to sweep kick Zabuza off balance while the two clones delivered a quick double strike against his shoulder pressure points to make him reflexively lose grip of his sword.
"I'll get the first hit on him dud! Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke started by breathing out a giant fireball that quickly grew to the size of Zabuza's full height.
The Missing Nin laughed tauntingly as he hopped backwards to escape the slow moving ball of fire; "As expected of a Genin…Flashy moves but not enough to hurt me!"
Ryōga however quickly carried on with his follow up and took a deep breath. "Earth Style: Stone Pistol Jutsu!" He yelled out before spitting out a quick moving barrage of rocks into the fireball; Quickly exiting through the front as flaming stone bullets that hit Zabuza in the shoulder but then followed on to keep hitting him with a rapid fire pace.
"Tandem Uchiha Style: Burning Shrapnel Bullets!"
Sakura watched in awe as she saw both her beloved Sasuke and to a lesser extent Ryōga land several dozen hits on him. "Stay behind me, Mr. Tazuna! This may still be dangerous!"
Kakashi couldn't help but smirk in satisfaction as he saw the two Uchiha finally work alongside each other, though that wasn't going to last as Zabuza got to his feet.
"That's….IT! Whatever you just did hurt like hell…So now I'm gonna escalate this Dead or Alive mission to just DEAD!" Zabuza yelled angrily as his body singed with the lingering burns from the two boys' Jutsu taking him by surprise. Without even hesitating to recover, Zabuza began weaving an almost blurry number of handsigns with each other.
Kakashi could quickly see that this wasn't going to be a small one, started to go along and use the same handsigns since the Sharingan allowed him to mirror and copy his opponent's Jutsu.
"WATER STYLE: WATER DRAGON JUTSU!" The two called out as the rising water around them quickly turned into constructs of dragons that fought and bit each other like their real counterparts would in the skies. However the duress of Zabuza's damaged body from Kakashi's continued assault and the surprise attack from the two boys meant that the Leaf Jonin could come out on top as he knocked Zabuza into one of the nearby trees. "It's over Zabuza…If you keep fighting here…Then all that will exist in your future…Will be death…"
Zabuza growled and raised his head up once more; "You…I'll kill you a-" He barely had time to finish his sentence as several thin needles quickly pierced through his thick neck and forced him into the ground motionlessly.
"I thank you for distracting Zabuza for long enough." A masked ninja acknowledged them from the top of a tree before climbing down to examine Zabuza's body.
"H-Hey, who are you?!" Ryōga was quick to get on guard but Kakashi was quicker to stop him from jumping in even though he was running on empty himself.
"That's a Hunter-Nin, they are typically trained to pursue and kill runaway or dangerous targets…Judging from that mask, they must be from the Hidden Mist too." Kakashi explained as the Nin quickly shouldered Zabuza's body and vanished with it.
That momentary moment of calm came about as Sakura emerged with Tazuna; "We did it…We managed to make it!"
"It's not too far to my home, we can get there and you four can rest up for as long as you need to." Tazuna offered but his gratitude turned to shock as Kakashi soon passed out from the Chakra exhaustion.
"Kakashi Sensei!"
——A Day or so later——
It took some time for everyone to recover though Kakashi needed it the most, however he was adamant on making sure the others learned something while he did so. "So, I'm going to assign you some training exercises while I recover from my injuries…Your first task is to climb those trees."
The three looked at Kakashi oddly, though Sakura looked at least aware of the lesson's purpose. "You mean with our bodies or by using our Chakra to do it?"
Kakashi nodded as he hobbled on his crutch towards the nearest tree before slowly climbing straight upward like he was just walking uphill. "Astute…The purpose of this lesson is to show you how to better control your Chakra by channeling it into the soles of your feet, that way you don't burn yourself out with big and flashy Jutsu."
Sasuke hmphed at that statement since he could suspect that one was aimed at him.
"And it's also so that you can better gauge how to best improve your core Chakra pool so that way you can strengthen your techniques better." Kakashi mentioned as he climbed back down; "I expect you to reach…" He then gauged the height of one of the trees and threw a kunai near one of the top branches. "This high before dinner."
"Mere childs play for a prime Uchiha like me!" Sasuke mentally sneered as he rushed towards the tree and began to climb by following Kakashi's set instructions, however he got about a quarter of a way up before the trunk smashed itself inward and Sasuke lost his foothold before falling back down.
Ryōga decided to approach it more cautiously as he rushed towards the tree and began to climb up too, however he got about as high as Sasuke did before his foot slipped and he crashed into the ground.
Kakashi sighed as he watched both Uchiha boys groan at the outcome. "This is the puzzle you have to overcome…Use too much like Sasuke did and you'll smash the foothold that you're trying to make…Use too little and you'll slip off of the surface entirely like Ryōga did." He waved them off as he headed inside to rest.
"Damn it…Something like this shouldn't be hard!" Sasuke grumbled as he tried to climb up again but his angered state made him break teh hold he had and he fell backward.
Ryōga on the other hand was trying to breathe in and out to focus his mind and steady himself. "Just remember the training that you did on the course…" He thought to himself as he then rushed forward with the intent to pump more Chakra in, he climbed up….
And Up…
And Up…
CRASH!
He made it a couple of steps further before his mind wavered and he completely broke the foothold he had in trying to focus.
"Heh…Of course you'd have trouble with this kid level training, dud!" Sasuke taunted him as he got up.
"I don't see YOU at the top of the tree, so keep your focus on climbing…" Ryōga sniped back at him with a little more indignation than he had liked, making Sasuke growl and climb higher up.
It took them a few hours but Ryōga finally managed to make it to the top after an admittedly embarrassing number of tries while Sasuke was still stuck in his own head.
"How?! How the hell did you managed to get up there so fast?" Sasuke demanded to know as Ryōga climbed back down. "ANSWER ME!"
"This is what happens when you keep looking down on me, Sasuke…Just imagine like a tightrope…." Ryōga remarked as he finally felt a swell of pride as he managed to get one over on Sasuke. Though something else did cross his mind when he got caught up in the fight with Zabuza; When he ventured back in to see Kakashi's surprise and Sakura's look of pride turn to shock when she realised the next one in was Ryōga and not her Sasuke.
"Well, looks like you cracked it…Congratulations, Ryōga." Kakashi offered his small praise since the other Uchiha did manage to accomplish it in a shorter time that he expected him to.
"Um…Kakashi Sensei? I was wondering if I could ask you about something?" Ryōga asked before sitting at the table with the others. "I always freeze up when it comes to Taijutsu…Can I…Try alternatives for it?"
"Alternatives? Look, Ryōga…I know it's hard for you to get a grasp on Taijutsu unless you're forced to do it but we can't just let you stop using it for good, you NEED a good fallback in case Ninjutsu or Genjutsu isn't an option." Kakashi pointed out, as a former ANBU; He knew about what Ryōga had to endure before the Uchiha Massacre happened but he couldn't just let this up and go away without a good reason.
"Well, maybe I could try with something else like using a sword?" Ryōga suggested; "Seeing Zabuza use that sword gave me some ideas on how it looks and I think that it feels…well, right for me…"
"Ryōga, you can't honestly be serious that a killer Missing Nin makes you want to pick up a sword?!" Sakura yelled at him; "Besides…Even with a sword, you're not gonna look any cooler just because of that!"
"I'm not doing it to be cool…I want to be able to fight but not at the cost of me having a panic attack every time I have to throw a punch! And even more so when people are pitying me for being like this!" Ryōga argued back.
"Well…As much as Taijutsu is prominent in the world, Kenjutsu isn't a bad avenue to check out…If you feel confident that this is what you want to do, then I'll hear you out on the concept…On the condition that you can procure a sword yourself and that you have the sufficient training materials to start practicing."
"Well, Mr. Kakashi, there is a blacksmith in the town; He could potentially sell something there for Ryōga…" Tazuna's daughter suggested as she brought in tea for him and Ryōga.
Unbeknownst to the others however, Sasuke had managed to complete the Tree Climbing Challenge just a few minutes after Ryōga went back inside and had overheard everything. "The dud thinks that he can try to outdo me by using a sword? I'd like to see him try...He can try anything he wants but no matter what, I'm ALWAYS going to be the better Uchiha than him."