Chapter 37: Brawl at the Bridge

Chapter 37: Brawl at the Bridge

Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 37: Brawl at the Bridge

"So, Zabuza and his little assistant are dead?..." Gato looked around the bridge with a smug expression.

"That's too bad, I wanted to see that arrogant missing ninja die with my own eyes... oh well..."

"Talk about being arrogant..." Naruto grumbled. He gave Kakashi a side glance. "What are the instructions? Can we kill them all?"

"We, ninjas of Konoha, are fully authorized to kill non-mission-related targets for as long as our lives are threatened. There is a self-defense clause and all of that." Kakashi answered.

"Including the short one?" Naruto glanced at Gato.Cheêck out latest novels at novelhall.com

"What are you waiting for? Go get me the head of that bridge builder, and kill all those useless ninjas too!" Gato ordered.

The men behind him began to laugh and shout. They all seemed eager to finally get something to break.

"That sounded like a threat to me. So yes... the short one too." Kakashi said.

Tazuna stood a good distance away from them, with Sakura right in front of him, acting like a shield. "Are they going to be okay?" the builder asked.

Sakura's eyes moved to her side, to the tree where she had left Sasuke to rest, before going back to the front. She could only see the backs of Kakashi and Naruto.

She knew they were both injured and tired. She had not missed the burns on her teammate's body. Those were the reason she had not yelled at him for letting Sasuke get hurt. And Kakashi had been using his Sharingan during the entire fight with Zabuza, and she was aware of how much that drained him.

"They are going to be okay... they won't lose against some swordsmen." She said with conviction.

Kakashi went first and started to slash the mercenaries away.

"Maybe I should have brought a sword with m-" Before he could finish his sentence, the blade of the sword he had just used snapped in half. The pressure he had put on the weapon had been too much for this cheap steel.

"If I can find a decent one." He added.

When Naruto glanced forward, he saw that only Gato was still standing. Kakashi had made quick work of the other mercenaries, leaving the short businessman by himself.

"W-Wait! Let us talk about it!" Gato stared at their silver-haired teacher. All his previous arrogance and confidence were now gone.

"There is nothing for us to talk about. You must have been aware of the consequences of your actions." Kakashi told him.

"Wait!" Gato got to his knees and raised his arms up. "I surrender! Just arrest me."

Kakashi was now hesitant to continue. If Gato surrendered, maybe it would be better to restrain him and take him to Konoha, where he could be properly judged.

The Jonin felt something moving quickly and passing by his side.

"Urgg..." Gato let out a gagging sound. His neck had been pierced by a broken sword blade.

Kakashi turned around and watched as Naruto approached. It didn't seem like the boy had suffered a single scratch from those mercenaries.

"What was that?"

"The blade?" Naruto asked. "I ran out of kunais."

"You know what I mean... the man had surrendered. There was no need to kill him."

"That is incorrect. For as long as that man was alive, our client's life was going to be at risk. I was just following the mission parameters." Naruto shrugged. "And let's be honest... if you had wanted to stop that blade..." he pointed at Gato as the man collapsed on the ground. "You could have done so... Am I wrong?"

Kakashi sighed. His eye moved back to the now-dead businessman.

"I suppose not."

A.N: - Remember to comment, vote, and/or leave a review if you have the time. Those things help me a lot and I would really appreciate it.

You can Support me on P@treon if you like and get 20 advanced chapters.