After another intense battle, Zabuza was too exhausted to continue.
Just then, a group of people emerged from the fog...
Zabuza recognized them and spoke bluntly, "Gato, what are you doing here? And what's with your men?"
Gato, seeing the situation where both sides were heavily injured, smirked with satisfaction, "Heh, plans have changed slightly."
Then, with a sinister laugh, he added, "Sorry, Zabuza, but you're going to die here."
"What?"
Zabuza felt a surge of anger. He didn't expect a weakling like Gato would dare to speak to him like this.
However, given his current physical state, Zabuza didn't act rashly.
Seeing Zabuza's lack of reaction, Gato assumed he was scared and continued to taunt, "And here I thought you were the Demon of the Hidden Mist. To me, you're just a brat who hasn't even grown fangs yet."
As he spoke, the group of thugs behind him burst into laughter.
Gato, feeling his mockery wasn't enough, walked over to Haku and poked him a few times with his cane to confirm he was unresponsive. Then he continued, "You know, this guy really deserved to die. But good, this disgusting creature is finally gone. Hahahahahaha!"
Gato stepped on Haku's body and laughed maniacally.
The thugs behind him began to close in.
Zabuza could no longer hold back. He turned to Kakashi and said in a low voice, "Kakashi, I think our fight can end here. Tazuna is no longer my target."
Kakashi nodded, and Zabuza, now free of restraint, declared, "I'm going to make this guy who insulted Haku... pay the price!"
He turned to Naruto and said, "Kid, lend me a kunai."
Naruto, with his eyes brimming with tears, didn't hesitate and tossed the kunai to Zabuza.
Zabuza tore off the bandages covering his face.
His hands were too weak to grip the kunai properly, so he bit down on it instead!
With a shaky but determined stance, Zabuza charged into the crowd of thugs.
He headed straight for Gato.
Gato was startled. He hadn't expected Zabuza to still have any strength left.
He quickly retreated to the back of the group.
"Haha... you dare charge at us with so many people here?"
One of the thugs, wielding dual swords, stepped forward to confront Zabuza but was slashed across the chest by the kunai.
Those who tried to block Zabuza were shocked by his ferocity.
Relying on instincts honed through countless battles, Zabuza dodged blades and spears again and again.
But, there's no way the current Zabuza could fight off hundreds of enemies alone.
Before long, Zabuza was riddled with wounds, looking like a porcupine.
Zabuza's mind began to blur. The massive blood loss made his vision grow darker and darker.
Seeing an opportunity, the thugs who had been hesitant earlier now gathered in front of Zabuza, forming a human wall.
Spears and blades continued to strike from the sides and behind.
No matter how strong Zabuza's will was, at this moment... it was useless.
"Haku... I'm sorry. It seems I won't be able to avenge you."
The darkness grew heavier and heavier...
So heavy that Zabuza felt as if someone had broken through the impenetrable wall of thugs before him.
The faint figure... seemed to be saying something...
"Eat this, and you can have your revenge."
'Eat... it, revenge...'
Zabuza's slowing mind took several times longer than usual to process the meaning of those words.
'Eat...'
Looking at the small, brownish pill the figure held out, Zabuza didn't hesitate.
He dropped the kunai from his mouth and swallowed the pill in one gulp.
'Eat... revenge!'
'Revenge!'
In an instant, Zabuza felt an infinite surge of energy and Chakra coursing through his body. Every part of him felt powerful, and his mind was clearer than ever, though still shrouded in anger!
At that moment, the darkness in Zabuza's vision vanished. He looked up at the faint figure before him.
The person's face wasn't particularly memorable, but it was handsome, with soft features that gave off an air of elegance.
In Konoha, he'd probably be quite popular. And even in Kirigakure, you could call him good-looking.
At this time, Zabuza could instantly make this judgment, though he didn't know why his thoughts were so sharp.
But what surprised him the most were those eyes…
Unlike the pupils of an ordinary person, these were blood-red with three black sickle-like patterns in each eye.
Just one glance was enough to instill fear.
Other than that, no matter how he looked or sensed, the person before him seemed like an ordinary human.
Zabuza didn't care about that...
But then, the sickle-shaped eyes began to spin rapidly, forming a vortex-like pattern that appeared on the Kubikiribocho not far away.
In the next moment, the Kubikiribocho, which had been some distance away, appeared in front of Zabuza without warning.
Just like the mysterious figure, it was impossible to trace...
Zabuza didn't dwell on it. With his strength restored, he gripped the broken blade and charged into the crowd ferociously!
Like a demon...
At this moment, Zabuza didn't use any flashy Jutsu, nor did he use auxiliary Ninjutsu such as the Mist Hidden Jutsu.
All he had was the most primal, most efficient killing technique!
When the blade rose, blood fell.
Like rain staining the ground red, like broken thorns.
Even the dance of the Kaguya Clan seemed insignificant compared to Zabuza's slaughter.
In an instant, blades clashed, spears broke, and bodies were torn apart.
The bloodthirsty Zabuza, wielding the Kubikiribocho, which had been repaired because of blood, charged toward his final enemy… Gato.
Seeing the blood-soaked figure drew closer, Gato trembled in fear, his mind filled with only one thought.
'Demon…'
"Do you think... you can kill me?"
Zabuza spoke each word deliberately, and with a swift horizontal slash of the Kubikiribocho, Gato was cut in half at the waist before he could utter a final word.
After dealing with his enemy, Zabuza felt no lingering attachment.
He could now feel the power within him fading more clearly.
It seemed that in a moment, he would return to the brink of death.
However, he had no regrets.
Zabuza dropped his Kubikiribocho and walked toward Haku, leaving bloody footprints with each step.
"Haku…"
"If possible... I really wish I could go to the same place as you. "
At that moment, Yuto, who had teleported using Space-Time Dojutsu, spoke up, "No need to rush to die... Agree to my conditions, and I can save both of you."
Zabuza saw that it was the person who had given him the chance for revenge, so he said without hesitation, "Deal!"
He didn't even ask what the conditions were.
Yuto took out two greenish Healing Pills from his system interface and handed them to Zabuza, "Just eat these."
Zabuza first fed one to Haku, then took the other himself.
As the Healing Pills took effect, Zabuza felt a warm, powerful current flowing through his veins.
Unlike the earlier brownish pill, this warmth was genuinely healing his body!
Even old injuries from long ago were washed away by this warm current!
Zabuza had never felt so comfortable in his life.
If the earlier brown pill was like the raging waves of the Land of Water in mid-autumn…
Then this green pill… was like the gentle spring of the Land of Fire.