Being a rogue ninja is worse than being Hokage.

This would prevent Danzo from starting to suspect him.

Even if Danzo still doubts him, the mission report that was misled by Naruto because of Kakashi will create an image of Naruto that fits the Third Hokage's preferences.

The Third Hokage was instructed to continue protecting Naruto.

"Kakashi-sensei, do you have any plans to deal with Zabuza?"

Sakura's question brought Kakashi back to his senses.

“If Zabuza wasn’t dead, he wouldn’t have appeared during this time. I’ve confirmed that Zabuza is ‘dead.’ Even if it’s a fake death, it would still take a huge toll on his body, so he needs to rest just like me.”

"Once he recovers, I will also get myself back to normal."

"So there's no need to worry about Zabuza; he'll still be handed over to me."

Chapter 20, the Chunin Exams arc begins.

Naruto once considered whether to recruit Haku as an ally, since the protection that Konoha provided for him would disappear once Haku became a rogue ninja.

The ninja world is fraught with danger, and his identity as a Jinchuriki is destined to be relentlessly pursued by the Akatsuki organization.

It's always good to have an extra helper.

But Naruto quickly abandoned this unrealistic assumption.

Bai is kind by nature, but that doesn't mean he's naive.

Haku had long since brainwashed himself into becoming Zabuza's tool, and those who protected Tazuna could only be enemies of Zabuza.

Using their knowledge of the original story to their advantage and kill Haku and Zabuza through information asymmetry is the safest option.

The time Kakashi was unconscious was the best opportunity for Naruto to deal with the two of them.

Naruto doesn't need to worry about Kakashi discovering his disguise, and Naruto only needs to deal with Haku. As for Zabuza—it's just a case of fake death turning into real death. Naruto's pressure in fighting will be much less.

Compared to Haku, who has already chosen Zabuza and can find a replacement at any time, this is a bloodline limit ninja.

Naruto always knew that the Land of Waves incident was his most crucial objective.

The purpose was for Kakashi to use this unconventional mission to determine whether Team 7 was currently at a level sufficient to participate in the Chunin Exams.

To allow himself to have a legitimate opportunity to contact Karin, who is coming to Konoha to participate in the Chunin Exams.

Karin, who can help Naruto control the Nine-Tails and has a very high probability of becoming Naruto's comrade in his rogue ninja career, is the one Naruto values ​​most and cannot replace right now.

And this goal has already been achieved.

After weighing the pros and cons, any normal person would know how to make a choice.

Naruto quickly abandoned his ridiculous idea of ​​trying to win Haku over.

If they try to win over Haku, they might end up losing more than they gain, and be unable to contact Karin again.

It's also possible that in the process of winning over Bai, he inadvertently exposed his disguise of the past two years.

But choosing to kill Haku and Zabuza is much easier than trying to win them over.

The aforementioned potential problems will disappear instantly.

There's no need to worry about Zabuza, who's been released back into the mountains, suddenly emerging from the fog with Haku one day.

After all, no one would waste energy being afraid of "dead people"—

Even Kakashi is the same.

Kakashi was unaware that Zabuza and Haku had already been secretly dealt with by Naruto.

A week later, Kakashi recovered and faced Gato leading a samurai group to attack the bridge construction workers, but Zabuza was still nowhere to be seen.

Kakashi was wary of Zabuza's potential comeback, but in the end, nothing came of it.

As for Gato, the culprit who caused poverty in the Land of Waves, he was also dealt with by Kakashi during the attack.

With the patron who paid for the attack dead, the wandering samurai scattered like birds and beasts in an instant.

The mission to protect Tazuna was thus downgraded from Rank B to Rank C, the same rank he had initially assigned to the Konoha ninja when he first entrusted the task.

The news that Gato had been dealt with by the Konoha ninjas quickly spread throughout the Land of Waves.

Without the oppression of the perpetrators, Tazuna's popularity in the Land of Waves began to shine.

The bridge connecting the various islands of the Land of Waves was completed ahead of schedule.

Although Naruto's rare period of freedom from surveillance in the Land of Waves ended prematurely, he was somewhat reluctant to leave.

However, there are also advantages...

After Kado's death, the workers who came to help build the bridge all hoped for a bright future for the Land of Waves, and most of them worked without pay.

This saved Tazuna the cost of building a bridge. Although the official difficulty of this ninja mission was rated as C, the settlement amount was calculated according to the B-level standard.

The specific price was negotiated between Kakashi and Tazuna. After all, Kakashi, as a Jonin, had extensive mission experience, so his price was naturally reasonable.

Even so, the completion date for the cross-sea bridge in the Land of Waves was still mid-June.

There are only a few days left until the joint Chunin Exams, which will begin in July.

Team 7 returned to Konoha after completing their mission in the Land of Waves.

……

June 24th, Konoha.

Naruto stared at the calendar in front of the window, lost in thought.

A week had passed since Kakashi returned from the Land of Waves. On the day he returned to the village, he disbanded Team 7, allowing the three members of Team 7 to do as they pleased.

Naruto guessed that Kakashi was probably reporting his experiences from the mission to the Land of Waves to the Third Hokage.

After all, it's a mission with a true difficulty level of B.

Although the mission in the Land of Waves ended happily, all the usual procedures were still followed after the mission concluded.

Moreover, Team 7 includes the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the last Uchiha of Konoha, making Kakashi's reporting process more complicated and time-consuming than that of a regular ninja team.

Just as Naruto had guessed, after letting Team 7 have some free time, Kakashi didn't regroup them until the day after they returned to the village.

After Kakashi reassembled Team 7, Naruto used the Wind Sweeping Technique to counter-surveillance the Root organization members who were monitoring him in the village.

Danzo did not send more people to monitor them, which means that the precautions Naruto left for Kakashi in the Land of Waves were effective.

Next, Team 7 returned to their daily routine before heading to the Land of Waves, carrying out their D-rank ninja missions.

The morning of June 24th arrived in an ordinary and uninteresting way.

However, Naruto knew very well that today would be a very interesting day.

Naruto remembered that in the original Naruto manga, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, clearly revealed the start time of the Chunin Exams.

That is, July 1st.

Today happens to be the day that foreign ninjas from various countries enter Konoha for the joint Chunin Exams, hosted by the Hidden Leaf Village of the Land of Fire.

"The day of defecting from Konoha is drawing ever closer."

With this in mind, Naruto reminded himself that he needed to be especially cautious, especially in crucial moments.

Naruto has been preparing for his defection from Konoha ever since he traveled back in time.

The Chunin Exams ended with the deaths of the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazekage, involving forces such as Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Danzo, and the Akatsuki organization that appeared in Konoha shortly after the Chunin Exams.

If Naruto is not careful, all his preparations could be rendered useless in an instant.

But danger and opportunity are equal.

It was in this complex crisis that Naruto was able to completely break free from Konoha's constraints on him.

"Opportunities are always hidden in danger."

Naruto made up his mind, put on the headband that represented his identity as a Konoha ninja, and walked out of his house.

……

On the same day, at noon, in the Hokage's office.

Although the Hokage has a busy schedule every day, he manages to complete it all in an orderly manner by himself.

It's rare to see the village's Chunin, Special Jonin, and Jonin gathered in the office like today.

The village's ninjas all came in response to the Hokage's summons.

"It seems everyone has arrived."

The Third Hokage straightened his Hokage hat and glanced briefly at the people standing in front of him.

The Konoha ninjas were summoned to the Hokage in such an urgent manner, but they did not show any signs of anxiety or worry.

"Judging from your expressions, you should already know why I summoned you here, right?"

The third generation asked in return.

Faced with the Third Hokage's question, the ninjas gathered in the Hokage's office elected a representative to answer from among the Jonin standing at the front, ranked from highest to lowest ninja rank.

A Jonin with long silver hair, a Konoha headband covering his left eye, and a black mask concealing half his face, stepped forward.

"It's about the Chunin Exams, isn't it? After all, many daimyo have come to the village recently; I presume you invited them—"

Kakashi answered, but he still had a question: "But when exactly is the exam?"

"One week later, on July 1st, Konoha will officially begin the Chunin Exams."

The Third Hokage's words startled all the ninjas.

"I didn't expect it to be so fast."

Among the Jonin, there is a man with a black watermelon-shaped haircut, extremely thick black eyebrows, and wearing a green bodysuit that looks like a strange costume.

He expressed surprise at the close proximity of the Chunin Exams.

"Kai!"

Beside this oddly dressed Jonin, a man, also a Konoha Jonin with a thick beard and a cigarette dangling from his lips, reminded Guy that his words were inappropriate for the moment.

"It's alright, Asuma."

The third generation stopped the man with the cigarette in his mouth from making a big deal out of nothing.