Naruto and Sakura jumped just in time; the bridge shuddered and groaned, before collapsing right in the middle. Sakura landed softly in the water below, but girders, planks and rubble kept falling behind her, creating waves that made it difficult to maintain her water walking concentration.
"Sakura, where are you?" came Naruto's panicked voice from above.
Naruto had jumped backwards onto the intact part of the bridge that was still connected to the Land of Waves, while Sakura had jumped into the water below.
"My bridge!" Tazuna wept. "Months of effort, all for nothing!"
The mist had completely faded away at this point; Sakura could see the Land of Fire, far away in the distance across the channel…
…and she could also see a Water Prison Jutsu. No way, had her useless sensei got himself caught again?
"Sakura!" came Kakashi's urgent-sounding voice from behind the gigantic water bubble. "I can't hold him much longer; I need you to finish him off!"
Oh, how the tables turn…
"You can swim back to shore, right?" Sakura asked Tazuna, relief washing over her upon hearing her sensei's voice. "You're kinda heavy, and you stink of sake, er… no offence." And without even waiting for an answer, she dropped him in the water.
Sakura sprinted across the sea, jumped over a cresting wave and unsheathed the Manyuu blade, but just as she was about to plunge her katana into Zabuza's heart, Haku flickered in front of her, arms outstretched.
"Manyuu Style Kenjutsu: Breast Slice, Breast Flow Version!"
But one must never forget that Okazumi Tsutomu was an absolute coomer, in his previous life and in this one; a gooner to his last breath, because that was literally what had killed him the first time around!
(And by gooner, I don't mean an Arsenal F.C. fan, I mean the Urban Dictionary definition, just to be clear!)
It was said that Breast Flow was a technique that allowed one to manipulate breasts as easily as if one were pouring water from one container to another; thus, the name Breast Flow. But until one experienced motherhood, one could never truly claim to have truly mastered Breast Flow…
Sakura had an unbearable thirst for breasts, and as such, she could only absorb, and never release! Upon seeing the girlish Haku abruptly appear before her, she promptly forgot that he was a flat boy and subconsciously activated her breast cutting and absorbing technique!
And in this magical state, her blade would slip through all flesh as though it weren't there, cleaving only the breast and leaving the body unharmed. If Sakura trained some more, she would even gain the power to make her blade selectively cut or pass through as she willed…
Perfect for cutting the hostage-taker in the back without harming the hostage in the front!
!!!
Sakura's blade slashed through them, but since Haku and Zabuza were both men, her blade passed harmlessly through their bodies, without doing anything!
…
"Er…" said Sakura after a very awkward pause, with Haku, Zabuza and her own Kakashi-sensei staring at her in disbelief. "My blade cannot harm those, er… pure of heart. So… I suppose I'm sparing you. Go on, get out of here, ya scamps. I won't be so lenient next time…"
…are you for real? Kakashi's eyes seemed to be saying.
And it's at that precise moment that Gatō and his army of thugs chose to reveal themselves.
"Heh, heh, heh…" Gatō sniggered from the top of the bridge; or what was left of it, at any rate. "I suppose I should be thanking you, shinobi of the Leaf, for doing my work for me… last time I hire rogue shinobi from the Mist, I tell you."
The unfinished bridge had split in half, leaving Gatō and his goons on the side that led nowhere, and Naruto on the side that led to town. Whom were they trying to scare, exactly? They weren't water-walking shinobi, so unless they went back to their boat, they weren't going to be hurting anybody, since they were basically stranded in the middle of the sea!
"Who the heck are you!" Naruto shouted from the other side of the bridge, pointing at the man in question.
"…who is that kid?" Gatō asked one of his subordinates in confusion, before figuring Naruto wasn't worth his time. He then continued with his villain speech: "Look at you now, you two freaks… skewered by a little girl. Heh, not that I was going to pay you anyway — better to make you do the job for free, then have my boys here finish you off once you're exhausted!"
It appeared as though Gatō was operating under the misunderstanding that Sakura had run them through with her sword, when in fact, Zabuza and Haku were as good as new… relatively speaking. Haku had exhausted most of his chakra, and Zabuza had just been assaulted by an entire waterfall, but other than that, they were fine.
"Kakashi…" said Zabuza quietly. "It appears that we no longer have a reason to fight."
No pay, no work!
"It certainly appears that way," said Kakashi calmly.
And after a moment's thought, he cancelled the Water Prison Jutsu restraining Zabuza, and Sakura removed her sword from their chests.
"Haku," Zabuza simply said. "Follow me."
"Yes, Zabuza-sama!" Haku said eagerly.
The two of them jumped straight up from the water's surface and landed in front of Gatō, who jumped backwards in fright.
"How can you follow someone who doesn't even treat you like you're human?" Naruto shouted at Haku, cupping his hands around his mouth to project his voice. "A monster who wouldn't even cry for you if you died!?"
Haku turned around, a faint smile on his lips.
"Your dream is to make everyone recognize you by becoming the number one ninja in your village, wasn't it?" Haku called out to him. "It's a wonderful dream, but I've also got a dream of my own, you see. Serving under Zabuza-sama, who took care of me when no one wanted me and protected me from those who hated me; that is my happiness. My dream is to make his dreams a reality!"
Naruto was stunned. Despite everything Haku had said, it was clear that he did not really think of himself as a tool, and neither had he done things exactly as Zabuza, his master, would have wanted him to do them. Seeing them stand together fearlessly against the army Gatō had raised against them, there wasn't a single doubt in Naruto's mind that the two of them shared an unbreakable bond.
Haku had once been like him, Naruto realized. And if he could make his dreams a reality, then there was no reason why his own dreams of marrying Sakura and becoming Hokage couldn't be realized as well! He didn't just have to be a tool, a cog in the system.
He could be his own man, with his own ideals and his own choices! That would be his Ninja Way!
"All right, then!" Naruto shouted; he took a running jump, before landing next to Haku. "I'll fight by your side, then! These guys are the ones who killed Inari's dad, right?"
"Kakashi Style: Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
Naruto looked around him; fifty Kakashi had just appeared out of nowhere on what remained of this part of the bridge. Sakura and Kakashi had jumped up from the river and joined the fray!
"Then, you've got our help, Naruto!" said Sakura, smiling brightly. She then faced towards the village and called out, "just wait a little longer, Sasuke! This'll only take a minute!"
Sasuke grunted noncommittally, but his voice went unheard over the crashing of the waves below him.