dopliss: Here it is… the final of the 'Land of Waves' arc.
Mizuki: You´re gonna fit six episodes into one chapter?
dopliss: I said I´d finish it this chapter, and I´m gonna do it.
Disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to me.
A/n: Paenitet me (Latin for 'I´m sorry) Naruto fans if you´ll get disappointed.
"Now that we´re here, everything should be alright," Naruto proclaimed. "You know how in stories the hero usually shows up at the last minute and kicks butt? Well, that´s what I´m gonna do, right here and now, believe it!"
Zabuza groaned in annoyance. "Ugh, this brat again?" he said.
Sasuke was also displeased. Shut up, Naruto, he thought.
Kakashi was more disappointed than displeased. What an idiot, he thought. If he had stayed hidden, he could have been so much more effective.
Haku looked at the noisy genin. That boy… he thought, and remembered his conversation with him yesterday.
Naruto then prepared for combat. "Alright, here´s my Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
But before he could make the Jutsu, Zabuza threw shuriken at him. "Naruto, MOVE!" Kakashi yelled.
The shuriken were then stopped midair by Haku´s senbon needles. Everyone seeing this was stunned by the fact that NEEDLES could stop SHURIKEN.
"It didn´t get him," Sakura said stunned.
"Those weapons cancel each other out, amazing!" Tazuna marveled. "Now, that´s what I call lucky, I think."
Sakura´s expression then turned from stunned at the sight, to angry at Naruto. "What´re you doing, Naruto?" she screamed. "Are you crazy?"
"This is a battle, not a talent show," Kakashi scolded. "Don´t show your opponent your Jutsu! A ninja´s art is deception: always keep the enemy guessing. Even when executing a single Jutsu, one must distract their opponent´s attention to catch them off balance, and outmaneuver them. You just turned yourself into a human target, when you enter a battle like that!"
Naruto freaked out when he heard that. "I´M SORRY!" he screamed. "I JUST TRIED TO RESCUE EVERYBODY!"
"But," Kakashi changed the subject. "There´s another mystery here." He indicated the question of why Haku saved Naruto.
"Haku, what´re you doing?" Zabuza asked.
Haku stood up, and looked at his partner. "Zabuza," he started. "This boy… let me fight him my own way. Please."
"Bring it on!" Naruto goaded, and got in a fighting stance.
Takai and Torabu stared each other down. "You think you´ll win this time?" she asked. "You´ve only managed to hit me twice at all: once in our first battle, and once just now. And I don´t think I need to remind you of the result of our first tussle."
The cat-boy stretched his arms, legs and tail. "I don´t need to be reminded, I don´t want you to remind me," he said. "What I do need, is to kick your ass all the way across the world!" He then made his Chakra Claws appear.
She sneered at that statement. "When I´m done with you, you´ll wish you ended up like last time." She then made hand-seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Zabuza sneered. "So you want me to leave this to you?" he asked. "Is that it, Haku?"
Haku didn´t answer. "As usual, you´re too soft," Zabuza went on.
"Forgive me," Haku stated simply.
Soft…? Sasuke thought in wonder. He then noticed his wounds. He´s right. Look at these wounds. He cut me up with his needles, yet he didn´t hit a vital spot. Why? He then narrowed his eyes at Haku. Is he just trying to humiliate me?
"I´m warning you," Naruto told Haku, and pointed a finger at him. "One way or another, I´m gonna rip off that mask, and tear you apart!"
It´s impossible, Kakashi thought. Naruto can´t match this kid. He tensed up. I´ve got to…
"Don´t even think about it," Zabuza warned. "You know the score, Kakashi. If you go after Haku or Takai, I go after the bridge builder."
Kakashi knew he was in a tight spot. He got me, he thought. I can´t protect Tazuna AND help the others at the same time. Sakura´s feisty, but she can´t take on Zabuza alone.
"Relax, Kakashi," Zabuza mocked. "Sit back and enjoy the show. Let´s see how they do, one on one."
"Shouldn´t we help them, Konran?" Sairento asked.
"I do not think we can do much, Sairento," Konran answered. "We are both heavily wounded, Sensei cannot help us, Sasuke is trapped in the mirrors, and neither Naruto nor Torabu looks like they want us to interfere."
"But then what can we do?"
He was silent for a few seconds. "Nothing… For now, at least," he said.
"That mask, and your bogus story, you worked with Zabuza all along!" Naruto realized. "You think you can get away with stuff like that?"
Haku looked downwards. "I´m sorry," he said. "But as your sensei said: 'Deceiving your opponent', 'Catching them off guard'… that´s the art of the ninja. Please don't take this personally."
Sasuke took the moment, grabbed a kunai, and aimed at Haku between two mirrors. But while you´re jabbering, I´ll catch YOU off guard! He then threw the kunai at him.
Haku saw it coming, and moved his head a little to dodge it. Naruto then noticed Sasuke inside the gathered mass of ice mirrors.
"I haven´t forgotten about you," Haku said to Sasuke. "Not for an instant."
So THAT´S where Sasuke is, Naruto thought. He´s pinned down.
Haku turned to face Sasuke. "Some warriors accept defeat gracefully," he said. "They know when they´re beaten, others do not. So be it. Let us finish our battle, then. To the death!" He then walked back to the nearest ice mirror.
"Hey, where´re you going?" asked Naruto.
Haku stopped in front of the mirror. "It´s alright, Naruto," he said. "We´ll have our fight next." He then walked into the mirror, stunning Naruto.
Torabu kept jumping away from the incoming fireballs. He then decided to counterattack, by creating four Shadow Clones and using them as shields for the fireballs, so he could get closer. He then took a kunai, stabbed Takai in the stomach, and jumped away before she exploded.
"Nice try, but I´m not falling for that trick again!" he declared.
He was then surrounded by twenty of her, and all of them used their Fireball Jutsu at once, catching the cat-boy in the fire! When the smoke cleared, ashes and burned wood remained.
"The Replacement Jutsu again?" one of them asked.
The cat-boy then appeared on top of the highest mirror, and threw kunai and shuriken at the Fire Clones, making those he hit explode. The remaining clones spotted him, and jumped up to him. He then smirked, and disappeared in a puff of smoke, revealing himself as a clone.
"Over here!"
The Takais looked towards the sound, and saw Torabu making hand-seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" he yelled, and fired his own fireball at the clones, incinerating them all.
"Since when did Torabu become so cool?" asked Sairento.
Here he comes! Sasuke thought, as Haku´s image returned to the mirror he went into. He looked around at the other mirrors. None of them had Haku´s image. The real one is over there! Sasuke thought. But as he reached for his kunai…
"I´m right behind you." …Haku´s voice sounded from behind him. Haku´s image was now gone from the first mirror, and present in the other one.
He transported there in an instant! How? Sasuke thought wide-eyed.
Haku´s image then appeared on all of the mirrors, all holding needles at a throwing position, and they threw them at Sasuke, cutting him further.
What is that? Naruto thought in worry. Sasuke´s getting all ripped up, and I can´t even tell where the attacks are coming from! How is he doing that?
Sasuke was thinking as quickly as he could. What kind of Jutsu is this? Could it be that he has clones hiding in the mirrors, all of them throwing needles at the same time? No, They´re too fast for that. I can´t even see where they´re coming from! But if it was just a cloning technique, he wouldn´t need the ice mirrors. Those mirrors are definitely the key to his attacks. But what´s my next move?
"Sasuke, Naruto, THINK!" Kakashi shouted. "You need to attack from the outside AND from the inside at the same time!"
Naruto then had an idea.
Yes, Sasuke thought. It´s all about position, and Naruto and I are in the perfect position. If I attack him from here, and Naruto hits him from the outside, we can do it!
"HEY!" Naruto shouted. "I snuck in here to save you!"
True to word, he sat in front of Sasuke, startling the latter with his idiocy. "Naruto," Kakashi started in dumbstruck annoyance. "You sneak up on your ENEMY, not your ALLY."
Torabu twisted his ears, trying to locate the real Takai by sound. He then felt someone touch his tail, and he turned around to see Takai holding it tightly. She then pulled and slammed him into the bridge. She quickly let go, and used her Fireball Jutsu up close on him! When she stopped, he was badly burned.
"Your little number with using my technique was impressive," she said. "But you can´t hold a candle to me, Kitty."
He jumped up onto his feet, and rubbed the sore spots. "Thought I´d show ya I learned something from our last encounter," he said. "Now, it´s time to fight fire with fire!"
He jumped away from her. Both made hand-seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" both yelled, and fired fireballs at each other at the same time.
"YOU´RE A COMPLETE LOSER!" Sasuke yelled angrily (and with good reason). "YOU´RE A NINJA, THINK CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU MOVE!"
"WHAT´S YOUR PROBLEM?" Naruto yelled back. "YOU SHOULD THANK ME FOR COMING IN HERE TO HELP YOU!"
"Naruto, if we´re both inside here…! Forget it! I´ve had it with your mistakes!"
"And I´ve had it with your attitude, believe it!"
Naruto´s building a solid reputation as the most clueless ninja in history, Kakashi thought. The more he helps, the worse things gets.
Sasuke finally had enough. "That´s it, I´m gonna destroy those mirrors, right now!" He then made hand-seals.
"Hey, what attack are you using?" asked Naruto.
"These mirrors are made of ice, so how do you destroy ice? Figure it out." He then blew a fireball at the mirrors in front of him.
But the mirrors neither melted nor even dripped!
"That didn´t do anything at all!" Naruto fumed.
"You need much more heat than that to melt this ice," Haku stated. The images then attacked the two boys, cutting them both.
"Where is he?" Naruto grunted. "Where´s the needles coming from? Are they clones?" He then looked at Sasuke. "We gotta get the real one! Which one is it?"
"Look into every mirror as hard as you can," Haku taunted. "You´ll never learn my secret."
"Oh yeah?" Naruto said and made hand-seals. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
The clones appeared and jumped towards each mirror. They figured that since there were many mirrors, just as many clones could break them. But Haku jumped from each mirror across to the next, whilst cutting the clones. The clones disappeared, and the real Naruto was badly damaged.
"These mirrors only reflect my image, allowing me to transport myself at the speed of light." Haku explained. "Through my eyes, you appear to be moving in slow-motion."
Kakashi´s eyes then widened in realization. "I knew it!" he said. "It´s a bloodline trait: a Kekkei Genkai!"
"Kekkei Genkai? What is it?" asked Sakura.
"It´s like my Sharingan: you can´t learn it, it has to be in your blood, in your genetic code, passed down from generation to generation within a single clan."
"But that means…"
"Right, even I can´t copy that technique. There´s no way to destroy it, and no way to stop him."
Naruto was still determined. "I couldn´t break through," he said. "So, what? He´s not gonna stop me! I´m not giving up, and I´m not gonna lose! ´Cause I have a dream, and no one´s gonna take it away from me! Someday I´ll be respected in my village, that´s my dream! To be the greatest Hokage!"
Haku looked at Naruto. Dreams…? he thought and remembered his past.
It snowed in Haku´s old village. He sat on a bridge, hungry, cold and alone.
Then someone approached him. It was a younger Zabuza.
The assassin laughed in an evil fashion. "Pathetic little boy," he said, walked over to him, and kneeled down. "No one wants you, huh? Before winter ends, you´ll die with nothing, not even a dream."
Haku smiled at him, surprising the rouge ninja. "Your eyes are just like mine, Mister," he said. "We´re both the same."
"It was not my desire to be a ninja," Haku said. "It´s painful. I don´t want to kill you, but if you advance, I will have no choice. Then I will kill the kindness in my heart, and fully embrace the way of a ninja. And there would be no mercy, no turning back. This bridge will be the battlefield where our dreams collide. Now I must fight for my dream, just as you fight for yours. Please, do not blame me. I fight for someone who is precious to me. I live for him, and I´ll face death for him, so that his dream may become reality. That is my dream. And for the sake for that dream, if I must, I will act like a ninja and take your lives!"
The three boys then prepared to attack again.
The troublemaking ninja and the fiery female kept blowing fireballs at each other. The good news for Torabu was that he could hold her off, the bad news were that he was running low on chakra, while she seemed a lot less tired than him.
They both stopped, and the cat-boy panted heavily. "Already tired, Kitty?" asked Takai mockingly.
"Just gathering more breath for my fireballs, Lady," he replied.
"Hmph. Why don´t we get a little closer instead?" She then ran towards him, and they engaged in hand-to-hand combat.
"Even if they somehow manage to destroy the ice mirrors," Kakashi stated. "They still couldn´t defeat this ninja."
"How can you be so sure?" asked Sakura.
"They have the desire to win, but they don´t have the instinct to kill. That boy is a whole other breed. He lives for pain, he thrives on it."
"Exactly," Zabuza agreed. "Your village has become complacent. Your trainees never learned the most important lesson of all: to kill the feelings in their own hearts, to crush an opponent mercilessly, to destroy with no emotion or regret."
"Sensei, what´re we gonna do? Please tell us!" Sakura pleaded.
Kakashi thought about possibilities to help in fighting. If he ran, Zabuza would kill Tazuna. If he made Shadow Clones, they would be countered by Water Clones. He placed his hand at his left eye. So be it, he thought. It´s me or Zabuza, here and now. I´ll have to do this the hard way.
Both Zabuza and Sakura knew what he tried to do: use his Sharingan. "The Sharingan?" the assassin asked, before mocking the jonin. "You´re no fun, Kakashi, using the same old trick." He then dashed off at Kakashi, kunai at the ready, and stabbed his defending right hand.
"If it´s just an 'old trick', why did you just stop me?" Kakashi asked.
Zabuza laughed. "Use your Jutsus too many times, and your opponent learns to use it against you."
"Then count yourself lucky, you´re the only man alive who´ve seen my Sharingan twice. Show´s over, there won´t be a third time."
Zabuza laughed more. "Even if you did defeat me, you´d have no chance against Haku."
Sakura looked at the prison of mirrors. Is that possible? she thought. Is that kid stronger than Kakashi-sensei?
"When I found him, he was just a street kid," Zabuza told. "But I trained him in the most advanced ninja techniques. I taught him everything I know, plus he had special abilities that he refined on his own. The boy developed quickly; soon he could face the most powerful enemies. Outnumbered. In total darkness. It didn´t matter, he could strike with perfect accuracy. He cared nothing for his own life, or the lives of others. He´d become a unique fighting machine: a ninja. In the end, his powers surpass even mine. His bloodline trait, the Kekkei Genkai, cannot be defeated by anyone. I´ve created a tool that destroys anything that stands in my way, unlike the useless punks that follow you around!"
Naruto tried his Shadow Clone Jutsu again, and the same result happened again, but Haku also threw some needles at Sasuke. "How is he doing that?" asked Naruto.
It was barely there, but I saw it, Sasuke thought. He saw some water in the air getting repelled a few times by Haku´s movements. I can see his trails and follow his moves.
Naruto tried again, but before Haku could attack, Sasuke kicked some water up in the air. Haku again moved quickly, and cut the two boys and the many clones, repelling the water in the process. Both boys were sent to the ground on their backs. Sasuke stood up. I can see his feet, but that doesn´t mean I can match it, he thought. He then came up with an idea. What if I don´t use water, but instead… Yes. It might work.
Zabuza laughed more. "You think those genin punks can beat Haku?" he asked. "He´s the ultimate, a battle tool of destruction."
"Are you finished bragging? You´re starting to put me to sleep," Kakashi complained. "Let´s finish this. NOW!" He then uncovered his Sharingan Eye.
"Fine, but there´s one more thing you should know – a little more 'bragging' as you call it." Zabuza withdrew his kunai, and put it in his pocket. "Did you really think our last battle was only 'win or lose'? That I took your attacks like some genin? Haku was there, hiding, watching every move you made, studying your Sharingan. Haku can see a Jutsu once, and immediately device a lethal counterattack, it´s one of his gifts. I´ve been waiting to see the look on your face when you realize your Sharingan have become worthless. You once said 'the same Jutsu won't work on me twice', well, now I´m telling you that." He then made a hand-seal. "Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
The fog around them became even thicker. Zabuza disappeared, along with all visibility. "Sakura, stay with Tazuna!" Kakashi ordered.
Sakura moved closer to the old bridge builder, holding a kunai in case of trouble. "Follow my lead, Mr. Tazuna, and no matter what, stay close!" she ordered.
"Alright, I´ll stay right behind you," Tazuna agreed.
I know you need me, Zabuza, Haku thought. I´ll finish them off quickly.
Naruto tried again with the clones. But this time, as Haku jumped out of the mirror, Sasuke fired a fireball at him. It barely hit, and Haku continued getting rid of the clones. It shouldn´t take this long to defeat them, he thought.
Sasuke then aimed another fireball, as Haku went for the last clone. It singed his leg, but nothing more, and he finished off the last clone. Sasuke smirked at the minimal damage he did. This time I got him, he thought.
Kakashi was worried. The Hidden Mist Jutsu was thicker than last time they fought. He heard something fly towards him, and took out a kunai to deflect the shuriken thrown at him.
"You´re very skillful," Zabuza complimented from somewhere in the mist. "But I expected that from Kakashi the Sharingan Warrior." The assassin appeared behind the jonin, his eyes closed. "Next time you see me, it will be the last thing you´ll ever see again. Without your Sharingan, you´re nothing." He then disappeared in the mist again. "You wanted me to believe you could see through anything, even through time. But your predictions were wrong: I´m still alive." He referred to Kakashi´s statement about their last battle being Zabuza´s last. "So, you´re a fraud, Kakashi, you can´t read the future, and you can´t read me. The Sharingan is just a cheap trick that makes you seem more powerful than you are. I know now, your Sharingan has two separate elements: the 'piercing' eye, which sees every detail, and the 'hypnotic' eye, which mesmerizes your opponent. Employing these abilities, you can execute multiple Jutsus in quick succession to make it seem like you can see the future." He then talked about the end of their first fight. "First, with the 'piercing' eye, you copied my movements instantly. This replication of movements made me doubt my own thoughts. Once I was shaken, you infiltrated my mind, waiting for the slightest flutter to anticipate my actions, seeking out any hints to my next move. You timed it precisely, waiting for the right moment. The instant my mind became unfocused, you created a new illusion. With your 'hypnotic' eye, you induced me to make hand-seals, but you were making the same seals, so you seemed to be copying me, but actually, you controlled my movements."
"Now that I know this, a simple plan can defeat you. First I neutralized your 'piercing' eye with the Zero Visibility Mist." Kakashi was then punched a little distance away. He couldn´t react because the mist was slowing his reaction time. "Hmhmhm, next I neutralized your 'hypnotic' eye by keeping my own eyes closed. You can´t bore into my mind if you can´t look into my eyes."
Kakashi stood up from the hit. "Brilliant," he complimented. "Except, with your eyes closed, you can´t see me either."
"Have you forgotten who I am, Kakashi? I´m the demon of the hidden mist, the master of the Silent Kill, I can take you out by sound alone!"
Haku was impressed that Sasuke could read his movements. "Naruto," Sasuke said. "Can you do that again?"
"Of course! Nothing can stop me, believe it!" Naruto replied.
He doesn´t wanna show it, but he´s exhausted, Sasuke thought. The Shadow Clone Jutsu uses a lot of chakra. But thanks to him, I figured it out. I know how to break through!
The human eye cannot track my movements, Haku thought. It must have been a coincidence. Haku then prepared to attack again.
"Naruto, go for it!" Sasuke yelled. "Get out of here and attack from the outside, HURRY!" He then made hand-seals.
"Alright, you got it." And Naruto ran for one of the gaps between the mirrors.
"You cannot escape!" Haku stated. Naruto was then pushed back into the middle of the prison. He got back up and tried again. Haku then jumped out of the mirror he was in, heading towards Naruto, and it was that moment that Sasuke fired another fireball at Haku.
Haku saw the fireball, dodged it midair, threw a needle at Sasuke, landed in front of Naruto, and kicked him back again, while Sasuke got hit in the shoulder. Haku then returned to the mirrors.
"I couldn´t get past him!" Naruto panted. The two genin were very tired.
"That was good, Naruto," Sasuke praised, as he pulled out the needle. "One more time."
"Yeah, let´s do it!"
Sasuke knew that Haku´s chakra was running low, as well. The masked assassin was moving slower than before.
They then ran in different directions, but Haku had enough of them. "No more games, I need to stop this now!" he said, and aimed a needle at Sasuke. "This time you´ll stay down!" He threw the needle, and hit Sasuke in the knee! He was then hit with more needles, this time directly into his limbs!
"SASUKE!" Naruto yelled out to his friend, but he was hit with needles, as well!
I´m fighting an enemy I can´t see or hear, Kakashi thought. It´s been a long time since I´ve thought someone this tough. And Sasuke and Naruto… I don´t think they can hold out. Stay calm… Think… Where will he strike? It then dawned on him. "The bridge builder!"
Sakura and Tazuna were both tensed up. Then Zabuza appeared from behind the old bridge builder, and dashed towards them to strike. Kakashi appeared in the assassin´s path, his arms spread out to protect Tazuna. "Too late!" Zabuza yelled, and swung his sword.
Sakura´s scream was then heard…
dopliss: (scratching the back of his head) I think I bit off more than I could chew.
Mizuki: No kidding. The chapter´s long enough at it is.
dopliss: I´ll try to finish the arc next chapter. So, you´ll be left with a cliffhanger for now.