I am the new Hokage of Konoha.

Now, all we can do is delay as long as we can.

Chapter 244 White, Rainy, Uchiha Inahi

"Oh? You're freezing yourself with ice magic, are you just waiting to die?"

In the thick fog, Zabuza watched as Haku sealed himself inside the ice rock, and he sneered.

Once again, wielding a kunai, he charged toward Bai with incredible speed.

Clang~~

As if hitting an iron wall, the kunai in Zabuza's hand produced an extremely unpleasant shriek the moment it came into contact with the ice rock.

In the end, not only was the white ice rock completely unharmed, but Zabuza's kunai simply broke under its own weight.

"So hard?"

Looking at the kunai that was only half left in his hand, Zabuza was quite surprised.

"Again!"

Seeing that Haku had already sealed himself away, Zabuza, no longer worried about any danger to himself, revealed himself and formed hand seals again, saying:

"Water Release: Water Fang Bullet Technique!"

Instantly, several compressed water columns rose from the water beneath his feet, spinning rapidly as they crashed into the white ice rock.

The violent impact continued to resound.

But after the power of the Water Fang Bullet Technique dissipated, Zabuza's expression turned grim as he looked at the ice rock before him, which was not much smaller than he had expected.

"Water Release is too ineffective against Ice Release; Fire Release would undoubtedly be better."

Although Zabuza was a Jonin, he was ultimately not as good as the likes of Kumo-tei, the Third Hokage, and Kakashi, who had mastered all chakra nature transformations at a very young age.

Having lived at sea his entire life, he hadn't mastered much of the nature transformations of Fire Release techniques.

Even if it were used now, it would probably be like scratching an itch, having no effect whatsoever.

However, continuing to use water-style ninjutsu would be less effective and take longer.

"If only I had the Executioner's Blade in my own hands right now," Zabuza sighed again.

The life-saving technique that Haku was using, Ice Release: Ice Rock Hall, was truly disgusting to him.

Pure physical attacks cannot break through the defense without a sharp weapon.

As for ninjutsu, even someone skilled in water-style techniques like ninjutsu would find it difficult to defeat their opponent in a short time.

In addition, not only did White Chakra consume a lot, but he also expended a lot of energy by continuously using multiple large-scale ninjutsu and activating the Silent Killing Technique.

Although he could wear Haku down if he kept at it, he didn't forget that Haku's presence here as a Konoha ninja was not an isolated case.

If this drags on and other Konoha ninjas arrive, it will be difficult for him to survive in his current state.

At this moment, Zabuza's expression underwent a series of changes.

It's bad enough that they couldn't recruit the brat named Bai, but now they can't even do what they promised to do: kill him.

There's no other way now.

After looking around, Zabuza finally gave in to reason and took a deep look at the white figure inside the ice rock. Then, he vanished into the mist.

One minute later, the white fog dissipated and the sunlight reappeared.

A few minutes later, two fast-moving figures rushed over from not far away and stopped in front of Bai.

Just then, the sound of cracking ice and rock rang out, and Bai, who looked very weak, walked out from inside and greeted the man and woman in front of him: "Captain Daohuo! Yushu!"

"Bai, it's rare to see you so disheveled!"

As girls grow up, they change a lot. Compared to her tomboyish self, she is now much more womanly. The only regret is that her skin is now wheat-colored. At this moment, Yu Shu is wearing a Konoha headband and a green Chunin vest. Behind the captain's back, she is secretly winking at Bai and saying something.

Of course, jokes aside, as a medical ninja, she didn't forget to use her Healing Palm Technique to treat Haku's wounds after stuffing a huge homemade soldier's ration into Haku's mouth.

Bai, who had been stuffed with a huge soldier's ration by Yu Shu, had no choice but to bite the bullet and eat it.

Fortunately.

This time, unlike last time, it didn't get stuck in my throat and I almost suffocated.

Bai managed to swallow the soldier's ration pill, and feeling the faster chakra recovery in his body compared to a normal soldier's ration pill, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Seeing this, Uchiha Inahisa asked, "It seems you've encountered an unexpected opponent. To be able to push you to this point, do you know who their opponent is?"

Inahime was well aware of his subordinate, who was an orphan of the Yuki clan. Although the subordinate's current rank was only Chunin, his true combat strength had already reached the level of Jonin.

To be able to push the opponent to this extent, one must clearly be one of the best Jonin.

Such a person cannot be allowed to run rampant in the present moment.

"It's Zabuza Momochi, the rogue ninja from Kirigakure." Upon hearing this, Bai told him all the information he had.

"A demon? Even though he's a rogue ninja, we can't let him hide here. Yushu!" Uchiha Inahikasa, the squad leader for this operation, gave the order.

"Yes!" Yu Shu replied with a serious expression.

"Next, you will be responsible for treating Haku. Once you regain your mobility, the two of you will immediately take the Mist Ninja spy back." Uchiha Inahi glanced at Kenshiro, who had been ignored and was still unconscious not far away, and then turned to the distance and said, "As for me, I will go after Zabuza and eliminate this threat."

As a Jonin of the Uchiha clan who awakened the three-tomoe Sharingan, Inahisa Uchiha, who was once a valuable assistant to Fugaku Uchiha, was already among the top Jonin in terms of strength. Naturally, she was full of confidence in dealing with Zabuza, who was already in poor condition.

Yu Shu, who was also aware of this, nodded directly and said, "Yes."

So, after nodding to Yu Shu and Bai one last time, Uchiha Inahashi, the former member of the Uchiha martial arts faction, no longer complained and had truly become a part of Konoha, disappeared from their sight in a flash.

"Phew~" Seeing her usually serious captain leave, Yu Shu finally no longer had to keep a straight face.

Having regained her lively demeanor, she quickly healed Bai's wounds, then patted him on the shoulder and said, "All done!"

"Thanks, Yu Shu," Bai said with a slight smile.

"We're all teammates, no need to thank me." Yu Shu waved her hand casually, then went to Kenshiro, took out a sleeping pill from her ninja bag, and put it into his mouth before finally feeling relieved.

Although he usually acts like a boy, he is surprisingly thoughtful.

Bai smiled knowingly upon seeing this.

As classmates during their school days, teammates after graduation, and partners who remained together even after being promoted to Chunin, he knew Yu Shu very well.

Afterwards, Bai and Yushu, who were now able to move around, returned with Kenjiro.

Midway through, Bai asked, "Yu Shu, have you completed your mission?"

“Of course, all the spies that the Mist Ninja have in the Land of Waves have been eliminated. They will be completely unaware of the current situation here for the time being,” Yu Shu informed him.

It wasn't just Haku's team that came to eliminate the Kirigakure spies; after all, the Kirigakure couldn't have sent just one spy to the Land of Waves.

"We had already completed our mission and returned, but after seeing that you hadn't come back within the scheduled time, we came looking for you again."

Yu Shu, who had refused to take Kenshiro with her due to her injury, easily hoisted him onto her shoulder and continued speaking.

"I'm sorry to have worried you," Bai said apologetically.

"It's alright! When we get back, treat me and Captain Daohuo to a meal at Yile... no! Just barbecue!"

Yu Shu originally wanted to say Ichiraku Ramen, but then she realized that yakiniku (grilled meat) was undoubtedly more expensive, so she immediately changed her mind.

Anyway, she knew that Bai had never been materialistic. Compared to the bottomless pit that she had invested in skincare products, he had hardly touched the money he had saved from his salary and allowances over the years.

How could we not fleece such a wealthy household?

"no problem."

Sure enough, Bai, who didn't care much about money, nodded immediately, then, as if remembering something, added...

"However, I'm afraid it won't be possible to go back and treat everyone to a meal anytime soon."

The Fourth Shinobi World War had broken out, and these Konoha ninjas who had set out were already aware of it.

Based on their past experiences, it is clear that it will be difficult for these people to return to the village in the short term.

"Then let's postpone it. In my opinion, this war won't last long anyway. You know, our Konoha is stronger than ever before!" Yu Shu said confidently, referring to Konoha, which she now considered her own home.

"Indeed." Thinking of the Hokage, Shisui, and many other talented colleagues from Konoha, Haku said confidently.

This is also a microcosm of the current state of mind of all Konoha ninjas.

Unlike the anxiety during the previous three Shinobi World Wars, Konoha under the leadership of Yun Ting is not afraid or flustered even when facing an attack from almost the entire Shinobi world. Instead, they are full of confidence.

We firmly believe that this victory will ultimately belong to them!

"By the way, Yu Shu, I heard you're quite familiar with Kakashi-senpai?"

"Why are you suddenly bringing up that delinquent who reads porn all day long and is still single?"

Bai and Yu Shu's conversation continued.

Upon hearing what the latter said, Bai Weiwei remained silent for a moment before finally saying, "I just wanted to ask Kakashi-senpai for advice on ninja dogs."

Having learned a lesson from Zabuza's silent killing technique, Haku now has the idea of ​​quickly addressing his weaknesses in the face of enemies that are difficult for him to catch.

The best way is undoubtedly the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan.

No matter how well Zabuza hides, the so-called silent assassination is just a joke.

He couldn't get a disdainful look, so he had to seek something else.

Since I don't have the talent for ninjutsu like sensory perception, the simplest and most direct way is to rely on summoning beasts.

As far as Haku knows, the eight ninja dogs trained by Kakashi-senpai possess an extremely strong kin tracking ability that surpasses that of other ninja dogs of the same kind.

Therefore, Haku also had plans to summon ninja dogs.

The psychic contract he currently possesses is still empty.

Although Shisui-sensei raised a crow as a summoning beast, and Itachi-senpai, who had a good relationship with him, also chose a crow for his summoning contract, Haku, who always preferred white, was not particularly fond of black crows.

A ninja dog would be a good choice.

Especially considering that the Inuzuka clan has so many ninja dogs that they're almost bankrupt, the former will quickly sell them to them if the request is made, even if it's on the front lines.

'I must buy a white ninja dog when I get one,' Haku thought to himself.

Just then, Yu Shu spoke up: "Ninja dog experience? You mean Parker and the others?"

"Yes."