The blonde lay there, the rising sun slowly warming him through as it pierced the high trees of the surrounding forest, the thick fog had lifted from around his 'training grounds', a soft mist the only remnants of it. He could feel the morning dew that had settled over around the area, the scent of earth dominant in the air, he guessed he had went overboard like usual as his tired body protested to the idea of movement. He laid there still, his eyes closed as he dispersed the chakra still present in them, deactivating his ringed pupils from doing so.

A gentle breeze blew through the clearing almost causing him to shudder as it softly brushed through his long blonde hair, the bangs of his full fringe softly tickling his forehead thanks to the wind. The chill of the gentle gust only served to remind him that he had left his black, high collared jacket open last night, the burnt orange trim becoming more visible as he zipped it closed, hiding the simple white Uzumaki tank top that was layered beneath it. His thoughts were abruptly halted as the delicate sound of humming reached his ears, perfectly relaxed he rested a while longer, soon the hypnotising melody increased in volume causing him to realise that it was now less distant.

"Oh!" An alarmed feminine voice said. They let out a soothing giggle, the heart-warming sound only adding to the blonde's serenity until he heard them speak.
"You'll catch a cold if you sleep out here." They warned kindly, upon hearing this Naruto shot up into a seated position, the person now plain to see. They had long, straight black hair that seemed to catch the attention of the light as it flowed down their back; Naruto noticed the graceful, pale red kimono that was accompanied by a creamy, white sash tied around their waist, causing him to fight down a blush as he gazed at the heavenly figure.

"A-A-Angel?" Naruto stuttered out, still much under the influence of sleep, his sudden compliment caused the person blush a deep red and quickly turn away in embarrassment.
Naruto shook his head removing some of his confusion.
"I uhm…what are you doing here? How'd you get in here?" Naruto asked a little bewildered, he was sure that he had sealed the area off prior to starting his training the previous night.

"W-Well I was here yesterday night, strangely i couldn't seem to find my way out of the area. So I gave up, deciding to pick herbs." The person answered while trying to regain their composure from the blonde's initial reaction to seeing them.
"Herbs?" Naruto asked curiously, it seemed like a peculiar reason to stay out all night, even if he was partly to blame due to his seals.
"Yes, using these herbs can heal injuries and illness." The person who he assumed to be a girl informed, their lips slightly curved upwards sincerely as they answered.

"Oh…uh…I'm Naruto! What's your name?" The blonde asked sheepishly, only to be met with a smile.
"Haku…and by the way, I'm a boy." Haku beamed innocently, the declaration caused Naruto to almost have a heart attack due to the shock from the revelation.
'H-He's prettier than Sakura! How the hell can he be a guy!?" Naruto struggled inwardly until his new acquaintance brought him away from his musings.
"What are you doing here anyway, Naruto-kun?" asked the boy, the innocent smile still present as they leaned forwards showing their curiosity.

"Training…well I was until I fell asleep." He explained before itching the back of his head nervously, chuckling in embarrassment as he did so.
"Ohh…Are you a ninja or something?" Haku asked the blonde, listening contently.
"That's right! I came all the way from Konoha to help the land in hidden in the waves!" Naruto said adjusting his headband slightly, proud of his current mission.
"Wow, that's amazing…but why were you training?" The boy asked seemingly a little stumped.
"To be the strongest I can be! One day I ll be the hokage." Naruto announced with a foxy grin.
"For what reason?" Haku asked, unknowingly narrowing his hazel eyes at the blonde.
"To be the strongest ninja in my village! So everyone will recognise me for who I am…and not what they think I am." Naruto answered as he thought about all of the times he had been called demon.
"Are you doing that for yourself… or for someone else?" Haku asked somewhat coldly.
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck feeling under pressure as he gave his answer.
"Hmm…For both." He replied hoping that his answer would not anger the boy.
"Do you have someone important?" the feminine male asked warmly.

"W-What do you mean?" he questioned suddenly embarrassed, considering a hidden meaning.
"A person is capable of becoming truly strong when they are protecting something they cherish."
Naruto thought about the question, as he remembered the time he had fought against Mizuki in order to save Iruka-sensei, although Naruto was strong, back then he was no Chuunin.
"Yeah, I understand that." He said with a sincere grin but his smile wasn't returned.

Haku looked at him with a pained expression as he remembered his own past, the cold memories flooded his mind until he felt something coming towards him.
"You're eyes…" Naruto said with concern, he stretched out his hand, about to rest it on Haku's shoulder when the boy suddenly jerked backwards, causing his hand to land softly on Haku's chest.
Naruto looked at his hand and then back up to meet Haku's chocolate eyes, the person he was resting his hand on was now blushing a deep crimson. The blonde, confused, looked back towards his hand and squeezed as if testing something he was unsure of, as he did Haku let out a silent moan causing him to immediately withdraw his hand as the heat rose in his cheeks.

"Y-You said you were a boy!" Naruto announced embarrassed, only making Haku's blush deepen.
"S-Sorry for lying… a-a person I knew once told me it would be safer to tell strangers that I was a male." She said glancing at the ground, having not quite recovered from the moment.
Naruto nodded his understanding; he considered it may have made sense to do so.
"Well I guess that explains why you're so pretty." He thought aloud before suddenly realising what he said making him glow a soft red colour.
"I-I…uhh… I mean!" He stuttered out making the girl let out a gentle giggle.
"Thank you Naruto-kun, I hope we can meet again sometime" She said before standing, she bowed gracefully showing her polite attitude, then turned to walk away, her wooden basket of herbs in hand.
"Y-Yeah, me too! …B-Bye!" He said almost to himself as he released the barrier around the area allowing the girl to exit freely. The blonde sighed heavily then slumped down on his back, deciding to enjoy peace for a little while longer.

As Haku left the blonde her face turned cold, her smile fading as she considered the next place they'd be likely to meet, having to stop herself from sadly sighing she steeled herself then quickly left the peaceful forest area.

The blonde stood on the bridge with no small amount of boredom; he glanced over at his silver haired Jounin instructor who merely gave an eye smile in response. Naruto sighed heavily, he had offered to guard Tazuna's house to avoid standing here like this but a certain Uchiha replied
"If Naruto is capable of doing it then so am I, hn, I'll even keep Sakura with me for a disadvantage." The blonde shook his head as he remembered his team mate mocking the poor pinkette, well he knew she didn't mind, he was just glad Sasuke had opened up a little.

Naruto looked around, as thick mist descended, clouding his vision due to its density, the bridge he was situated upon was still under construction, though now it was about to be used as a battlefield for warring ninja. The fog around him was making even seeing the floor below him difficult, so looking at the enemy a few feet away placed a slight strain on his eyes, the low visibility obviously a disadvantage Naruto intended to remove it from the scene.

"Fuuton: Gust!" He announced as he built up wind chakra in his lungs before releasing it in the form of a powerful stream of wind, it sped towards the enemy dangerously but as expected they leapt out of the way of the attack with ease before landing un-phased. The jutsu's true purpose was to clear the mist before it spread any further, and fortunately for the blonde it had worked, his vision now clear he glared towards his opponents.

"Good work Naruto...looks like it's one on one." Kakashi complimented while thinking aloud. Naruto nodded an affirmative to the scarecrow jounin who took his leave to combat the mist assassin. The jinchuuriki charged at Haku, startling her with his speed as he raced across the bridge closing the distance between them almost instantly.

He decided to make use of her sudden vulnerability, beginning a deadly taijutsu skirmish, starting the bout with a straight kick to the gut leaving the mist kunoichi staggering backwards in an attempt to catch her breath. Still a little winded Haku was unable to guard against the solid uppercut that impacted her lower jaw, knocking her into the air. Not finished with his onslaught, Naruto span on spot, using his momentum as an added force, he drove both of his elbows behind him, striking Haku's ribs, forcing the girl to fly back a short distance.

Quickly recollecting herself, somewhat panicked by the blondes display of strength, she stood in a defensive stance, expecting Naruto to be unrelenting in his attack, she was surprised to notice that he too had fallen into a defensive stance looking prepared for any strike she may launch.

"Oi Kakashi, looks like you've got yourself a nice tool over there, but that brat is no match for him." Zabuza spoke with confidence but was quickly interrupted by the charging form of Kakashi; the mist jounin readied himself in a defence position as Kakashi rushed towards him, kunai in hand, fully intending to fight to the death.

"I won't let you down Zabuza-sama!" Haku announced after hearing her master's belief in her. She lunged at Naruto, striking with a series of three fatal kicks all aimed high, towards the blonde's head. Naruto barely managed to parry the first two kicks, knocking them aside with his wrists, though the unexpected roundhouse to his gut connected leaving him staggering backwards across the bridge. Quickly throwing up his guard in an 'x' formation, his arms managed to absorb most of the damage from the next powerful kick as he attempted to counter attack.

The two were locked in a taijutsu battle, each mercilessly throwing kick and punch towards the opponent, seizing an opportunity, Naruto caught Haku's small fist in his palm, holding her in place, leaving her wide open as he struck back with a punch to her neck causing her breathing to momentarily falter, not allowing her an opportunity to escape he followed up with a strong kick to the chest which sent her skidding backwards.

"Looks like I'll actually have to release these after all!" Naruto declared while making the hand seal for a dispelling jutsu, he had revealed a set of Gai approved weight seals that were hindering his movements.
"Release!" The blonde yelled, as he did so the seals started to glow a deep blue until they faded to nothingness, immediately feeling relief from the added weight he decided to go on the offensive.

In a burst of new found speed Naruto charged Haku taking her completely off guard, overwhelming her as he managed to land multiple punches to the body causing the girl to throw up her guard in an effort to hold her ground, Naruto changed tactic and struck with a powerful kick aimed at the side of the mist kunoichi's head, to his shock, Haku ducked under the blow and in a sweeping motion, kicked away Naruto's support knocking him off his feet. Showing no mercy she grabbed his airborne form by the ankles and thrown him over her shoulder, slamming him down onto the unforgiving bridge below.

Quickly rolling to the right, while still laid against the cold steel, Naruto narrowly evaded a barrage of senbon. Leaping to his feet, he hurled two explosive tagged kunai towards Haku causing her to jump left to safety, anticipating this; Naruto finished his set of hand seals.

"Katon: flame burst!" He yelled. As the name suggested a large burst of vicious flames shot out from Naruto's outstretched hand, aiming straight for Haku as she landed from her evasive manoeuvre, seeing the gushing flames she hurriedly flipped through one handed seals.
"Suiton: Water wall!" She roared. Haku's counter consisted of a 6ft wall of water that acted as a shield, defending against the harsh flames; they soon fizzled out of existence while the water evaporated due to the intensity of the heat.

Using the clashing techniques as a distraction Naruto charged, leapt into the air and landed a harsh flying kick to Haku's jaw, the crushing blow causing her to loose balance leaving Naruto to unleash a barrage of taijutsu against the ice user.

"Kage Buushin no Jutsu!" Naruto yelled causing four clones to appear, taking advantage of the still dazed Haku; they attacked her from four sides, covering all angles. When she came around, her eyes widened in shock as she saw she was surrounded, thinking on her feet she slammed her hand on to the floor below her in an effort to disperse her opponents with a jutsu.

"Hyoton: Rising spears!" A sheet of ice flooded the area leaving the Naruto clones unable to re-act as they were pierced by a set of unforgiving frozen spikes, effectively 'killing' them. The real Naruto, luckily, was out of the radius, flying through hand seals preparing his own ninjutsu.

"Fuuton: Wind blade!" The jinchuuriki declared making a slashing motion with his right arm that was soon followed by a crescent shaped blast of wind; the attack was now hurtling towards Haku. Seeing she could not counter in time the mist kunoichi dodged, throwing senbon in attempt to skewer the blonde, two of the senbon struck the leaf genin, one dead in the left shoulder and the other piercing his right thigh.

"Now!" Haku commanded to herself as she rapidly closed the distance between the two of them while holding a hand seal in place much to the alarm of her opponent.
"Hijutsu: Crystal Ice mirrors." She stated coldly, suddenly after, the water moisture in the air began to condense together to form crystal like mirrors, twelve were created encircling the two at ground level and floating above them was another eight mirrors also in circle formation however the final mirror was facing directly towards the ground.

After the mirrors had taken their igloo like shape Haku did something that shocked Naruto, she pressed her hand slowly against the mirror then sank into it, then instantly every single mirror within the formation was reflecting Haku, Naruto took up a defensive stance, left on edge as he prepared for what was to come from this new bizarre looking technique.

"Looks like its game over for that brat; no one has ever escaped that technique." Zabuza announced with an overly large grin as his sword clashed against Kakashi's much smaller kunai.
"Naruto won't be beaten so easily." Kakashi said, staring the other jonin in the eyes as he managed to push as side the huge sword, in an instant he brought down his kunai slashing open the ex-mist Nin.
Suddenly a thick mist appeared right in front of his eyes and quickly spread across the bridge, once again making seeing near impossible for the scarecrow jounin causing him to frantically look around noticing that Zabuza had vanished.

"Honestly Kakashi, you didn't expect me to only have one way to deploy the mist concealment did you? How naïve." Zabuza taunted, his voice seemingly coming from all directions as he had activated his 'silent killing' technique. Kakashi quickly moved his Hitai ate to stop it from covering his sharingan, a desperate attempt to locate Zabuza though he only heard a mocking laugh.

"Even that eye won't save you now." The mist nin said before slashing at Kakashi's left shoulder, the attack, barely countered as Kakashi slashed back impulsively but Zabuza was already gone. His jonin instincts telling him to duck was the only thing that saved him from being decapitated, as he felt a few of his silver locks be sliced off, by the monstrous sword as it passed overhead.

Hastily looking around for Zabuza he was once again taunted.
"You see Kakashi, you are fighting with your eyes! That is why you will never beat Me."
"What are you talking about? the mist affects you as we—" he questioned though his train of thought was interrupted upon seeing Zabuza a few feet away from him, stood calmly with his eyes closed, yet somehow he seemed to be looking at Kakashi.
"There are more senses than just sight." Zabuza educated. Suddenly Kakashi was forced to leap backwards as the colossal sword was swung, evading just in time, but still received a deep gash across his stomach.
"Dammit! At this rate I ll be sliced in two!" Kakashi grunted while looking down at the wound, unable to rest he found himself narrowly evading another one of Zabuza's attacks.

'Think Kakashi, think! How can I beat him without seeing him?!' he thought to himself, reluctantly he tried closing his eyes, the act very nearly got him killed as his eyes forced themselves open and his body – seemingly moving on its own, blocked the strike with his kunai that was soon knocked away from him due to the strength of the attack.

Leaping back to formulate a plan Kakashi thrown down two smoke bombs creating a distraction, he hid within it, choosing to place explosive tags around himself in case Zabuza decided to follow him in. As intended Zabuza soon appeared, sword in hand, Kakashi couldn't react as he brought down the oversized blade, giving him a life ending blow, cleaving the man in two.

Zabuza's victory was short lived as the Kakashi in front of him poofed into nothingness, the cloud of smoke filling the area, still having his eyes shut he wasn't aware of the danger until it was too late, the sound of several fuses burning away before four explosions took place was the only thing alerting him of the tags, barely getting out of the smoke in time, he took some of the blast to his left side tearing up his arm and leg in the process.

"Where've you run too rat?!" Zabuza growled, tired of toying around he 'looked' around for Kakashi hoping to end the leaf jounin's life as soon as possible, after hearing a poofing noise which he guessed to be Kakashi, he found himself being hunted down by a pack of nin-dogs, the beasts having no difficulty in located the mist ninja via scent.

"Defeat you with something other than vision, hmm? It's not wise to give your opponent advice." Kakashi taunted with a 'matter of fact' tone as his dogs sped towards their target, the mist having no effect against their noses.

"Shit!" Naruto spat, another two senbon had been embedded in his stomach, as the waves of senbon continued the blonde was find it increasingly difficult to evade, the beatings he was so used too was helping his pain threshold greatly as he looked around, trying desperately to follow Haku's movements. Deciding that simply being aware hadn't worked the last few times, if the senbon sticking out of his body was a source of evidence, he chose to try a new strategy.

"Kage Buushin no jutsu." Naruto announced as two clones appeared looking in different directions in an attempt to locate the mist kunoichi, seeing her attack or not, could decide his fate.
"Those won't help you here. You will be defeated, give up. I don't wish to kill you, but to accomplish the dreams of another; I will kill my heart and become a ninja." She spoke in a cold, monotone voice.
"Grrr…Like hell I'd just give up!" Naruto announced stubbornly, he was unwilling to back down and defeat was not an option, he glared up at the mirrors in the 'arena' of ice, waiting for the Nin to strike.

A blur of movement was seen flickering from a mirror behind the leaf genin and sooner than he could dodge another barrage of senbon threatened to pierce his neck. Seeing the needles in advance, one of his clones grabbed him by the arm, swung him in a circle and launched him towards the blurring movement, effectively evading the senbon and countering at the same time.

Naruto cocked back his fist as he flew through the air at his now visible opponent, when within range he let loose, his fist slamming into the unprepared mask with a great force that launched the body attached to it across the bridge, causing his opponent to crash into one of the mirrors.

Hurriedly stumbling back inside the mirror behind her the ninja deemed herself safe, that strategy wouldn't work twice, if the blonde was as good as she thought he was then he'd know it, as if reading her thoughts the two clones standing by his side dispelled.

"It seems you got lucky, I can assure it will not happen again, I ask you once more, please – give up." Haku said with a slight tremble in her voice, it sounded almost desperate as she pleaded for him to give up, although this just seemed to enrage Naruto, his chakra flaring uncontrolled, as he glared back at the crystal mirrors.

"Why?! Why do you go against your own beliefs for others?" Naruto snarled, as he pulsed with rage
"People shouldn't destroy themselves for others! It's not right!" Naruto cried at one of the many mirrors, hoping that he could somehow talk some sense into his opponent.
"Would you not do the same if it was for the sake of someone precious?" Haku questioned softly, which apparently hit a nerve; Naruto gritted his teeth before staring back at the mirror.
"If they force you to go against yourself…they are not worthy of being called precious." Naruto spat out in anger, his voice echoing around the small arena.

"I see, but you and I are different. Zabuza-san is my only precious person, he took something that no one else needed and gave me a purpose. I am his tool and I shall not fail him." Haku said as her monotone voice broke revealing her soft, gentle voice as she spoke about her master with compassion.

Once more Naruto's eyes widened in shock upon hearing the voice, unknowingly he edged slightly closer to the mirror on instinct as if struggling to believe something.
"H-Haku? ..." He asked quietly, almost not wanting to hear an answer, the sound almost drowned out completely by the sound of charging dogs.
"I guess I do not need to wear this mask any longer." Haku replied softly as the mask slid away from her face to reveal her identity.

Then something in Naruto snapped.

His eyes flickered a dangerous shade of red and instantly his hands were upon either side of his head, clutching it as if to stop it from exploding, he writhed around screaming out in anguish and crimson whips of charka illuminated the ice mirrors, swirling around the small area startling the mist kunoichi. Wind kicked up due to the pressure from releasing such a large amount of chakra, the blonde only seemed to be releasing more until suddenly the crimson energy withdrew into its container leaving the boy empowered.

His head snapped back, his arms fell limp as his stood staring up at the highest mirror, his trembling legs the only thing keeping him upright as his whole body shuddered from the sudden intake of demon chakra. His head arched forward in an almost inhuman movement as he stared towards the mirror that contained the real Haku, his red eyes peering into it as a face splitting grin came across his features.

"Hahahaha! You can't hide forever!" Naruto shot out, not breaking his stare, the laugh misplaced coming from the blonde as its crazed tone caused Haku to shudder.
"This was all that was giving me so much trouble!?" Naruto roared now looked completely calm and un-phased by the situation, then the vicious, lethal grin was again present on his face.
"Like something like this would stop me." He threatened with confidence, without even realising the blonde was unleashing a terrible amount of killing intent.

In a blur faster than his opponent could follow, Naruto was challenging the mirror as he slammed his fist into the centre of it, only allowing Haku seconds to escape into a different mirror. Haku looked at the boy in front of her, his fist still implanted in the mirror.

"These mirrors are indestruc— that can't be!" She cried out watching in horror as the mirror shattered into pieces, the crystal shards littering the air as it did.
"Man, that's too bad… I thought you were going to say they were indestructible." Naruto taunted, shrugging his shoulders with a smirk. The blonde immediately snapped to attention in an unpredictable movement that Haku was now finding terrifying, she wasn't fighting against something human; this boy was a beast.

'How can he just tear them apart as if they are nothing?!' she thought to herself, submitting to a fear she had long forgotten, her breathing heavy as she hid behind the defence of her mirrors.
"Really… is this it? It looks like you're running out of mirrors! Hahaha!" Naruto pressured, still using the arrogant/ carefree tone as he flashed the girl demonic grin.
"You're precious to me! Hahaha! Do you really think I'd let you live your life as nothing but a tool!? " Naruto said in momentary control, his words affecting the mist kunoichi, leaving her gazing down at the ground sadly.

"Ha-Ha! Stop hiding in those damn mirrors already! I'm getting tired of this crap!"
"Not coming out!? Fine! I guess I'll just have to break them all!" Naruto announced. Red chakra swirled around his outstretched hand blessing it with enormous power, his head tilted to the side, staring down his arm, using it as a form of targeting guide. Rings formed in his red pupils, the pair of eyes he'd so desperately hidden from his village, were now revealed to the girl opposing him.

"Sorry! This demon chakra really doesn't like me holding back!" Naruto apologized as Haku, startled by the turn of events, panicked in her mirror, unable to predict what was coming next.
"Hahahah! I know! I'll make it up to you! Here, I've got a present for you!" Naruto bellowed, his maniacal laugh resounding throughout the small arena.
"Shinra…"Naruto prepared, the demon chakra altering his personality as fatal crimson chakra bubbled and burst around his arm, then in an instant the chakra sped up, violently twisting around the boy's arm as it crawled down to his outstretched Haku's despair the visible pure demon chakra only seemed to condense as it collected at the blondes hand, she had never seen anything like it, too shocked to create a counter-attack the ice user was left gawking at the sight of the new attack.

"Tensei!" The blonde roared, his voice carrying an enormous amount of weight as power flooded his body, the attack left his hand, the gravity around them being manipulated to create a devastating force to be reckoned soon as the word left his mouth Haku leapt backwards outside of the arena of crystal mirrors in cold sweat, fear written across her face, she only prayed the mirrors would offer some kind of means of stopping the frightening jutsu, she didn't even know what it was, but she sure as hell didn't want to find out.

A pulse of gravity flowed through the air causing it to ripple from the force, the crystal mirrors soon collided with the haunting attack and offered little defence against it; as soon as they were struck they began to crack, the initial blow not enough to shatter them, the rest of the force followed, almost immediately causing the crystal to smash under pressure.

The attack tore through the air as it raced towards it's intended target, not having any way to oppose such a force, the terrified kunoichi merely gulped, throwing up a hasty guard in an 'x' formation only hoping that her limbs would not be ripped from her.

Not giving the petrified Haku a chance to recover as the dense force brushed over her with tremendous weight, he buried a back fist strike into her ribs causing her to arch forwards onto his arm in pain, withdrawing his fist he left her bent forwards, writhing, he contined his slaughter by executing a jaw shattering scissor kick that launched the girl high into the air.

In hot pursuit, Naruto disappeared; reappearing behind his target he embedded his elbow into the back of the girl's neck, propelling her back towards the unforgiving bridge. Impacting with the unmerciful surface, Haku let out a cry of pain, her whole body trembling as she stretched out a weak arm in attempt to push her weak body into a standing position, for the first time since she could remember she felt hopeless, her life was about to be ripped from her.

Her eyes widened in shock, a breath escaping her as she felt her body now weightless, she realised Naruto was clutching her by her overcoat, lifting her so that she was at his eye level. He just stared in her chocolate eyes for a while, his piercing blood red, ringed eyes a truly intimidating sight, which only helped to unnerve her already trembling body.

"Stop with that shaking shit!" Naruto demanded, disgusted at the sight of the girl in front of him, he looked away and spat showing his distaste. Looking into her eyes once more he leaned closer, Haku truly scared felt herself pull away on instinct alone.
"Well?! Now what?! Huh!?" He bellowed causing her to jerk back further in a desperate attempt to hide away from the current situation; it was unlike anything she had ever faced.
"I don't see that piece of trash helping you!" He growled causing the ice user to scowl in defiance
"Don't you dare talk about Zabuz-" She fought back bravely in an attempt to stand her ground.
"Go ahead! I'm standing right here. Feel free to stop me! But I have a question…" Naruto offered, leaning over so close that he was only inches away from Haku's ear, his breath hitting her cold neck.
"What happens, when…? A better tool comes along? What happens then!?" Naruto whispered, increasing in volume until he was shouting in rage, The ex-mist ninja let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in before being violently shook in Naruto's grip, the blonde silently demanding an answer.

"Well!? What happens to you!?" He yelled violently as Haku's body went limp in his arm, giving up completely, however not receiving an answer only served to infuriate the blonde further.
"What happens to my precious person!?" He bellowed, the word precious ringing through the girls ears, a grim sense of guilt passing through her.

"B-But…b-but…" She stuttered out, not quite sure on how to even respond, the blonde had stumped her, she was beaten both mentally and physically, she was defeated.
"Y-You are right…I have failed Zabuza-san, I am to be discarded. Please kill me." She spoke softly, her tone icy as she embraced death, looking at the cold bridge below her that would soon be her final battlefield.
"I told you! I won't let you act like you're just some tool!" Naruto declared giving her another strong shake as if too bring her to her senses, tears in his demonic eyes threatened to fall, looking terribly out of place on the boy at this moment in time.

Their attention was caught by a deafening screeching noise; a fierce blue light illuminated the steel bridge below as the sound of thousands of chirping birds shrieked through the bridge's silence.
"Chidori!" Kakashi cried as the lethal lightning jutsu around his hand flared to life, he gripped his wrist in an effort to control the immense power; the technique prepared, the silver haired leaf jounin charged towards the captured Zabuza, with only one purpose in mind.

"I'm sorry Naruto; it would appear I cannot die just yet." Haku whispered softly, disappearing in a crystal ice mirror while Naruto was distracted by the deadly assassination technique his Sensei was using. The blonde turned to witness Zabuza about to be impaled, the sound of pierced flesh resounding through his mind as he saw her, mouth loosely hung open in a silent scream of pain, eyes a loss of their usual rich colour, she arched forward lifelessly, body limp, onto kakashi's outstretched arm that had pierced her.

Kakashi slowly removed his hand from the ice user, an unspoken amount of respect held for her, he placed her down carefully on the bridge but to his surprise he looked up at the demon in the mist.
"Hmph. A good tool until the end." He stated coldly, seemingly uncaring for the girl who had sacrificed herself to protect him, unknowingly enraging an already unstable Naruto.
Zabuza disappeared, leaving Kakashi startled, the scarecrow jounin frantically turning to see the man striking his blind side, he was finished.

The world slowed down for Naruto, everything slowed to a crawl, the movement in which would end Kakashi's life taking place in slow motion. He had just lost Haku now he was about to lose his Sensei, his mind was racing through thoughts at a million miles a second. He closed his eyes in desperation, willing the act he was witnessing not to take place. His eyes forced themselves open with grimace, now a soft purple colour, the ringed pupils still present.

Words he had never heard or spoken before appeared in his mind, not questioning it he outstretched his palm naturally as his body moved on its own.
"Bansho Ten'in!" The blonde declared, gravity rippled once again, the world instantly became speeding back to life as the ex-mist jounin was ripped from his position much to his confusion. Kakashi was left wide eyed in shock as he stared towards the blonde in wonderment.

Naruto really didn't want to have to use this, especially not in front of Kakashi, but it was a finishing blow, and right now that was something he needed as a deadly opponent flew helplessly towards him. Just for a moment, Naruto thought of his father, the Yondaime hokage.
'Sorry for stealing your technique old man…' Naruto thought to himself, smiling softly as a clone popped into existence.

He outstretched his hand to the clone, both jounin now watching with confusion the as the world once again seemed to slow for Naruto as he prepared his attack, as he prepared for his first kill. He felt it, the chakra being formed in his hand, the spiralling form being shaped by his clone assistant who was recklessly striking the energy with his bare hands, the blonde, catching the cold form of Haku laid lifeless caused his chakra flared dangerously, the sphere immediately growing exponentially.

"Oodama Rasengan!" The blonde announced, Kakashi's jaw was left wide open as he viewed a mini Minato saving him from the demon hidden in the mist.
Zabuza couldn't even react as the force of gravity worked against him drawing him ever closer to the dangerous technique that he sighted in the blonde's palm; this would be how he died. Naruto thrust the huge spiralling ball of pure chakra into the man's chest, immediately surprised by the force unleashed as it collided with the man's chest. The chakra begin to scorch Zabuza's skin as the sphere began to implode, the world chose this time to return to normal speed, the deadly technique of the fourth Hokage slammed into him, the force ripping a hole through his flesh not un-similar to the one Haku suffered through, then with a tremendous force he was launched away from the blonde, spinning in the air as he flew.

Naruto panted desperately, hungry for air as his clone disappeared, he wasn't use to controlling a force like that, it was a startling experience. He looked up towards the leaf jounin, who was merely gaping at the sight of Zabuza's corpse, not only had the blonde just saved his life but in the spur of the moment he just used one of the fourth's techniques then went on to silence the ex-mist jonin, permanently. Not to mention, the kid was in possession of the Rinnegan!

Naruto snapped back to life, immediately dashing over to the heavily injured ice user, the purple colour draining from his eyes leaving them a clear sky blue, he looked down sadly at the dying Haku.
"Shit! She won't last long!" Naruto analysed frantically, an idea raced into his mind and he found himself going through the hand seals for one of the few medical ninjutsu he had learnt from scrolls alone.

A pool of green chakra appeared within his hands, activating the low level healing technique much to the leaf jounin's surprise, the blonde held his hands over the wound desperately. After around thirty seconds he was about to attempt to close the wound using Fuinjutsu, to preserve the body until reaching a hospital, when he noticed something in his peripheral vision, Zabuza's murderous sword, the Kubikiri Houchou.

Soaked with Kakashi's blood the broken blade was absorbing the crimson metallic fluid and begun regenerating, which is when Naruto's eyes snapped open wide, he immediately raced to get it, as soon as it was in his possession he was by Haku's side, a single tear had fell from her eye as she stared up at the blonde who was urgently trying to save her.

"N-Naruto…I-I'm so-sorry…" she coughed out in a raspy voice, the crushed blonde merely silenced her as he softly placed his index finger over her delicate lips, shaking his head slowly. With that her eyes fluttered and she slipped into unconsciousness. Naruto let out a pained sigh, hurriedly turning to the deadly sword, the tool in which would he would use to save Haku's life.

Pulling out a vial of ink and an old brush he quickly slapped many simple symbols along the blade of the weapon as fast as his hands would allow him, not forgetting to look over them to double check their accuracy, with a satisfied nod he channelled a small amount of chakra into the blade, effectively bringing the seal to life.

"Fuinjutsu: Ability locate!" The colossal sword began glowing a deep blue colour as chakra flowed through it, the blade started to release a soft buzzing noise alerting Naruto that the technique had been successful, he picked up the blade and held it steadily over Haku's wound before stabbing her remorsefully in the same spot.

"Fuinjutsu: Ability Reverse!" The blonde declared, the blood that was repairing the blade from piercing Haku's body, crawled back down the blade, residing back into Haku. The blade slowly began seeping into the wound, the metal slowly deteriorating as it merged with the critically injured girl. Soon the blade had completely sealed the lethal wound, alarmingly though the legendary sword continued merging with the helpless girl.

"Please…please! Please work!" Naruto was shouting in a desperate mantra, tears stained his face as he looked at the girl in honest desperation, he couldn't lose her, he wouldn't, he refused to with every ounce of strength that he had. Kakashi glumly watched on as his Sensei's son suffered, the sight being almost too much to bear even for his cold heart that had witnessed this so many times.

Naruto watched on as the metallic skin that was sealing Haku's wound began converting into human flesh and soon enough it looked as if Haku had never been injured at all.
Naruto slumped forward, hopefully checking the endangered girl's pulse.

"…" Naruto let out a soft gasp, his breath hitched, his face the picture of surprise as he stared down at he girl, unable to stop the now heavier flow of tears.

Another new story! I hope you enjoyed reading it, this story along with 'House Guest' will be hopefully frequently updated, though I plan big things for 'The Hunted' including enhancing the earlier chapters, after reading it again I feel that I have made vast improvements since those chapters were released, I really don't want the early chapters to drive people away xD.

A huge thank you to anyone who reviews, adds to favourites and/ or Alerts, groups are always fantastic too! I try to reply to every review I get any questions will be answered!