Hi everyone. I know I've been on hiatus since the end of this past September without any word from me but life, college, and lack of motivation got in my way. But I'm finally doing this again and I will see when I can get the next chapter out. I would like to thank those who have stayed with me and for those who are just joining in on the adventure. I tried hard to make events a little different than they appear in the anime so if anything seems to be weird/awkward let me know in a review/PM and I will try my best to fix it. Enjoy!

(No one's POV)

"It was not my desire to become a shinobi it's painful. I don't want to kill you but if you continue then I will have no choice. I will kill the kindness in my heart and embrace the shinobi way. There will be no mercy, no turning back. This bridge will be the battlefield where our dreams will collide. I fight for someone who is precious to me. I live for him and I face death for him so that his dream may become a reality. That is my dream and if I must I will act as a shinobi and take your lives."

A smirk appeared on each of the genin's faces. They weren't going to show mercy either.

"Yeah! You guys can do beat him!" Sakura shouted trying to raise their spirits.

"Sakura stop. Don't push them. Even if they were to somehow beat his jutsu they still wouldn't be able to beat this ninja." Kakashi said never taking his eyes off of Zabuza.

How can you be so pessimistic sensei?" Sakura said with anger and confusion. Zabuza began laughing at her as if she said the dumbest thing he has ever heard.

"They have the desire to win but they don't have the instinct to kill. That boy is in a whole different league than them. He lives for pain. He thrives on it."

"Exactly, your village has become too complacent. Your trainees never learn the most important lesson of all; to crush the feelings in their own heart. To destroy an enemy mercilessly with no emotion or regret." Zabuza said as chakra began to swirl around him.

"But sensei if they can't beat him then what are we going to do?" Sakura said with more worry for her teammates than she had before.

'I could attempt to make a break for Naruto and Sasuke but then he would just kill the bridge builder. If I made shadow clones he would just counter with water clones then I would be wasting chakra and time. Oh well seems like I have no other choice. I'm gonna have to do this the hard way, it's either me or Zabuza.' Kakashi thought as he grabbed his headband.

'The Sharingan.' Sakura thought as she realized what he was doing.

Zabuza chuckled as he reached the same conclusion.

"The Sharingan again Kakashi? That's no fun, using the same trick." Zabuza quickly grabbed a kunai from under his shirt and quickly closed the distance between him and Kakashi. Kakashi didn't have enough time to completely block it. He held up his right hand to take the blow, the kunai's blade going through his hand.

"Sensei no!" Sakura yelled out.

"If it's an old trick why are you so desperate to stop me?" Kakashi remarked at him. Blood was dripping down his arm and onto the ground as the kunai was still embedded in his hand.

"Let your opponent see you jutsu too many times and hell find a way to use it against you."

"Then you should consider yourself lucky. There isn't a man alive who's seen my Sharingan twice but there won't be a third time for you." This only made Zabuza laugh.

"Even if you were to defeat me there's no way you would win against Haku. When I found him he was nothing but a street kid but I trained him in the most advanced ninja arts. I taught him everything I know and he even had his own special abilities that he refined on his own. He developed quickly and soon he could take on the strongest of enemies; outnumbered in total darkness it didn't matter. He could strike with perfect accuracy. He didn't care for his life or the lives of others. He became the perfect fighting machine. A shinobi. In the end his powers surpassed even mine. His kekkai genkai cannot be defeated by anyone. I have created a tool that can destroy anything in my way. Unlike those useless brats that follow you around." Zabuza jerked the kunai from Kakashi's hand.

"If that girl doesn't die after I kill you maybe I'll take her under my wing too. Since she's the only one with the potential to kill anything." Kakashi knew who he was talking about and felt anger course through his veins.

'He can't take Akina from us!' Sakura screamed in her head.

"Naruto can you create enough clones to smash those mirrors?" Sasuke asked.

Naruto chuckled and said, "Of course I can just watch this. Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Akina decided to help as well by making the same amount of clones as Naruto, but her clones attacked from the outside. Almost immediately their clones were disappearing in puffs of smoke but Akina's clones were able to crack some of the mirrors before disappearing. Sasuke was still in his crouched position analyzing anything he could about Haku. He noticed that when one of Naruto's clones kicked up some water into the air it looked as if something was making it swish back and forth.

'So that's how his jutsu works. He must be moving from mirror to mirror instead of clones. If only I could track his movements somehow then I could attack him with my fireball jutsu.' Sasuke thought as he devised a plan.

"Naruto. Akina. I need you to do it one more time." Sasuke said.

Naruto and Akina did as he said and attacked the mirrors again with their clones. Haku took them out again but his mirrors were still being hit by Akina's clones. They were the hardest to hit with his needles since they were outside of his ice dome and he used more energy on destroying Naruto's clones. Haku knew that at this rate he wouldn't be able to stop from having one of his mirrors destroyed he needed to take them out now. Starting with the girl with purple eyes. Unknowing to him though Sasuke had been tracking his movements again by kicking up more water and watching it be hit. It was as if he could see Haku more clearly the more he watched.

'Alright I can do this.' Sasuke thought.

"Again!" He yelled out. They were getting tired but Akina and Naruto were able to make more clones. Haku shot out of his mirror and struck down most of the clones. Just as he was about to strike down the last of the clones he noticed Sasuke's fireball shooting towards him.

'Impossible!' He thought as he dodged the fireball and took out the last of the clones. When he returned to his mirror he noticed that the bottom of his left pant leg was singed from the fireball.

'I am getting better. Next time I will take him out for sure.' Sasuke thought with his signature smirk.

"Are you done bragging yet? You're putting me to sleep. Lets finish this now." Kakashi pulled up his headband, revealing his Sharingan. Anger was still in his voice from Zabuza's comment about taking Akina.

"Don't worry I just have one last thing to tell you. A little bit more bragging as you say." This intrigued Kakashi as Zabuza put his kunai away.

"Do you think our last battle was win or lose? That I took your hits like rank genin? Haku was there, hiding, watching your every move. Analyzing your Sharingan. You see when Haku has seen a jutsu only once he can immediately device a lethal counterattack. It's another one of his special abilities. I've been wondering what your face would look like when you realize that your Sharingan is worthless. You told me before that the same jutsu wouldn't work on me twice. Well now it's my turn to tell it to you." There was a mischief glint in Zabuza's eyes when he finished speaking.

'What is he planning?' Kakashi thought.

"Ninja Art: Hidden Mist Jutsu." Almost immediately the fog on the bridge became thicker. It seemed to swallow anything that was visible like a blanket that you could put your hand an inch from your face and you would barely know it was there.

'What's going on? This mist is so thick that visibility is absolute zero.' Tazuna thought.

"Sensei?" Sakura called out hoping he was still there.

"Sakura go stay with Tazuna." He answered.

"Right." Sakura ran in the direction where she knew she last saw Tazuna. As she approached Tazuna become worried that it was Zabuza but once he saw her pink hair he calmed down.

"Oh Sakura it's just you."

"Don't worry Mr. Tazuna just follow my lead. No matter what happens just stay by my side.

"Alright don't you worry I'll be right behind you."

'The human eye cannot track my movements and yet this boy knew which path I would take. Seems like I may have to take him out first.' He prepared his needles as Sasuke told Akina and Naruto to do it again. Haku took out the clones and just when Sasuke released his fireball Haku hit him with needles too. Sasuke grunted in pain and had to release his jutsu before it could hit Haku.

'Damnit he stopped me before I could make a complete fireball. I need to think of something else Naruto looks done and I don't know what Akina's chakra is like right now.' Across from him Naruto was kneeling on the ground with needles and cuts all over his body and he was panting really hard. He looked like he was about to pass out. Above them Akina was okay physically but she didn't have much chakra left to continue to do this.

'Now I will make sure they stay down.' Haku thought as he disappeared from his mirror. He appeared in the middle of the dome and attacked Sasuke with needles. Luckily Sasuke was able to take out a kunai and block most of them but some of the needles dug into his stomach and arms. Haku kept throwing needles at him hoping that he would give him a clear shot to his heart. Akina took this opportunity to make two clones of herself and attack Haku while he was busy with Sasuke. Her clones attacked him both sides with kunais ready to take him out. Before they could reach him though he disappeared.

'Where did he go?' Sasuke and Akina thought.

'Naruto!' Akina thought as she raced down from her perch to Naruto, no time to make clones. Naruto had collapsed onto his side from exhaustion and low chakra, with no idea that he was in danger. Haku appeared above him and released a rain of needles.

'This mist is so thick. How can Zabuza fight in this?' Kakashi thought as he waited for Zabuza's first move. A sound caught his attention. He quickly turned around and stopped the shuriken attack with a kunai.

"Very skillful as I would expect from Kakashi the Sharingan Warrior." Kakashi was startled when Zabuza's voice came from a close distance behind him. He turned to face him and saw that Zabuza had eyes closed.

"But the next time you see me will be the last time you see anything. Without your precious Sharingan you have nothing." Zabuza disappeared back into the mist and his voice sounded like he was surrounding Kakashi.

"You wanted me to believe you could see through everything even time. You were wrong then Kakashi because I'm still alive. You're nothing but a fraud Kakashi. You can't read through time and you can't read me. Sharingan is a cheap trick that makes you appear more powerful than you are. I know now that you your Sharingan have two elements; the Piercing Eye that sees every detail and the Hypnotic Eye that mesmerizes your opponent. By using both of these abilities you can execute multiple jutsu in quick succession to make it seem as if you can see into the future. First with your Piercing Eye you copy my movements instantly making me doubt my own thoughts. Once I was shaken up you infiltrated my mind and waited for the slightest indication that would suggest my next movement. Then you wait for the right moment to create a new illusion that would throw me off. Then you use your Hypnotic Eye to induce me to make hand signs while you were doing the same ones. You made it appear as if you were copying me when instead you were controlling my movements. Now that I have this information I can use a simple plan to bring you down. First neutralize your piercing with zero visibility mist." Suddenly Kakashi was hit and he could barely block it. He was pushed back a few feet and landed in a crouch position.

'The mist is slowing my reaction time.' Kakashi thought.

"Next neutralize your Hypnotic Eye by keeping my own eyes closed. You can't penetrate my mind in you can't look into my eyes."

"That's sounds like a great plan 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 with just sound alone!"

'It's been a long time since I've faced anyone this tough. An enemy I can't see and can't hear. And I don't know how much longer Naruto and Sasuke can hang on even with Akina there on the outside. I have to stay calm. Where will he strike next?' The answer comes to him within a moment.

"The bridge builder!"

Sakura was still standing guard in front of Tazuna waiting for this battle to be over. Behind them Zabuza appeared with his hand already on his sword. Both Sakura and Tazuna turn around to face him just Kakashi places himself between them and Zabuza. Zabuza pulled out his sword and attacked.

Drip. Drip.

Naruto felt something wet run down his face and when he opened his eyes he gasped in shock. Akina was crouched above him with needles covering most of her back. Her eyes were closed tightly and she panted from the effort of dealing with the pain.

"Akina why did you do that?" Naruto asked. An image of when Iruka almost took the windmill shuriken attack for him before Akina saved them appeared in his head. Then when she saved him again from Zabuza when he was being coward floated through his mind.

Akina opened her eyes and said, "Because you're my teammate and friend. I'll always have your back." Slowly she tried to stand straight so as to not hurt herself further.

AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!

All of the genin's blood ran cold when they recognized that scream.

"That was Sakura screaming! What's going on out there?" Naruto asked as he got up.

"Where is Kakashi at?" Sasuke said.

"I suggest that you all pay attention." Haku said. Akina felt something hit her hard in her chest making her fly backwards into a mirror. All she could register was throbbing pain. She knew her head hit the mirror pretty hard and the needles went further into her back. Her eyesight was very blurry and she could barely register Naruto and Sasuke calling out her name. They tried to get to her but were intercepted by needles. Haku appeared in the mirror Akina was leaning against.

"You may as well surrender now I have taken out your strongest fighter. There is nothing the two of you can do." Sasuke glared at him with anger but he knew that he might be right.

'We definitely don't have enough chakra for Naruto and I to take him out and Akina was a big advantage with her clones.' Sasuke thought.

"Damn you! I'm gonna make you pay for what you did to Akina!" Naruto yelled out as he created clones.

"Naruto don't!" Sasuke shouted but it was too late. Without Akina's clones to help distract him Haku was able to take out Naruto and his clones faster than before. Needles were pelting Sasuke even as he tried to defend himself against them using a needle from off the ground. Naruto landed back on the ground with more needles all over his body. Naruto struggled to get up again but passed out, his body was too hurt and his chakra reserve was running on low.

"I told you that you should just give up, nothing you do will make a difference. You're both running low on chakra making your reflexes slow, unable to dodge the speed of my needles. Your abilities are weakening slowly but surely. Now I will make sure you never get up again." Haku prepared his needles to hit the areas of Naruto's body that would render him immobile. Sasuke quickly stood in front of Naruto and blocked all of the needles.

'That's impossible!' Haku thought as he looked at the panting Sasuke. Haku decided to try to throw him off by constantly moving his position in the mirrors. Sasuke kept his focus solely on Haku; his eyes were getting better at tracking his movements.

'I just have to keep focusing on him. But I wont be able to hold out like this forever.' Sasuke thought as he blocked more needles.

'How is he doing this? My speed is beyond the human eye, there is no way he should be able to track my movements. If that's the case then I won't be able to attack him. I'll attack his teammate instead.' Haku turned his attention to Akina, who was still in the same position against his mirror. Her breathing was harsh and small rivers of blood were flowing down the ice mirror and one ran down her face over her right eye. Sasuke was confused when Haku turned away from him but when he followed Haku's line of sight he saw why.

'Shit!' Sasuke pushed his chakra to his legs and ran as fast as he could to Akina. Akina couldn't even tell she was in danger; the blow to her head made everything unfocused. Her head was throbbing in sync with her heartbeat and she was suddenly removed from the cool ice her head pounded harder. She could tell that whatever moved was breathing hard and was wearing something with a navy blue color.

'Sasuke?' Was the thought that came to her as he gently set her down, on her side, near Naruto.

"It's not complete but I can see through your deceptions." Sasuke said. Even though her vision was still blurry Akina knew what she was looking at when she noticed two blood red orbs on his face.

'He's awakened his Sharingan? He has a better chance now of beating this guy.' Akina thought.

Haku gasped when he saw the Sharingan in Sasuke eyes.

'So he has a kekkai genkai as well, the power of a unique bloodline trait passed down through a clan. To even uncover this power in the middle of a lethal attack is an amazing feat. Now that he has it I won't be able to hold out much longer, he will be getting stronger as the battle progresses. He will continue to use those eyes to track my movements. This jutsu of mine already takes most of my chakra and soon I won't be able to hold it much longer. For now I will keep him on his toes and strike him at his weakest point.'

Haku began to move from mirror to mirror as he did before and released needles as he moved along. Each time though Sasuke was able to block them and was already in position for the next ones before they came at him.

'I'm getting better with these eyes of mine. I can already tell that he's almost at his limit too. His movements are getting slower as mine get better.' Sasuke thought as he blocked more needles.

'Damnit. I am aiming for his vital spots and I can't get a clear shot at them. He seems to know where I'm aiming for.' As Haku thought this Naruto released a groan of pain and tried to move.

"Naruto if you're awake I need you to get up. I can't keep protecting you like this. We need to get Akina out of here too." Sasuke said without taking his eyes off Haku.

"I know I know. I'm trying." But Naruto was still too weak and couldn't get up.

"Don't worry about me. Just focus on the enemy for right now, that's our main priority." Akina mumbled out looking at Sasuke, her vision less blurry than before.

"Don't be stupid Akina. You're a main priority too." Sasuke said looking down at her.

'Now!' Haku thought as he sent out needles towards Sasuke. Sasuke didn't see it but Akina did.

'No!'

Kakashi's chest was throbbing as he clenched tightly onto the wound that Zabuza's sword had made. Blood was dripping through his vest and onto the ground.

"You were late Kakashi." Zabuza said in a teasing tone. "You let the safety of those brats cloud your mind even further than it already is. Adding to the fog that surrounds your Sharingan. Your eyes may be sharp Kakashi but you can't read my movements anymore. I suggest you stop worrying about those brats they're at Haku's mercy. They're probably breathing their last breath as we speak. But don't worry you can apologize to them for failing them when you see them in the afterlife." With a demonic laugh Zabuza disappeared back into the mist.

"He said Sasuke would die." Sakura said to herself but she quickly shook away her doubt. "No. I need to have faith in Sasuke's abilities and believe that he will make it out of this alive. I believe in Naruto and Akina too."

"Exactly." Kakashi said surprising Sakura. She hadn't known he was listening to her. "I believe in their abilities. I have faith in them. Naruto the number one hyperactive knucklehead ninja. Akina the strongest kunoichi who will some day become the best ANBU Captain. And Sasuke, heir to the most powerful clan in the Hidden Leaf Village." Zabuza was shocked when he heard about Sasuke because he knew exactly which clan Kakashi was talking about.

"You mean-" Kakashi cut him off before he could finish.

"Yes. His full name is Sasuke Uchiha. The abilities of the Uchiha clan run through his veins. The Sharingan is his birthright."

"I had heard that only one young ninja had survived the tragedy of the Uchiha clan. That would explain how he advanced so quickly. But so does Haku, no one has been able to stop his secret jutsu. Even the most skilled shinobi fall before even just as I will make you fall before me!"

"Sakura stay with Tazuna." Kakashi ordered.

"Right, I got it." She said with confidence. Kakashi ran farther into the mist so that he could direct the fight about to happen away from Tazuna and Sakura.

'It is time to end this but he is the one who will fall!'

The sound of needles digging into flesh filled the air. Sasuke gasped as Akina was suddenly standing before him. She coughed up some blood since the needles that were aimed for Sasuke's heart hit her near her right lung. Sasuke was able to look straight into her eyes, since they were practically the same height, and all he could see was pain and contempt.

"Like I said focus on the enemy right now I'll be fine." Akina said with a small smirk on her face.

"Damnit Akina! You should have stayed down and let me handle it." Sasuke yelled at her. Akina didn't even flinch at his reprimand everything was getting too dark.

"Then you would be dead and Kakashi would lose against the both of them and our mission would be a failure." The pain of moving and taking that hit was beginning to take its toll as her legs gave out on her. Sasuke caught her and an image of his family flashed through his mind.

"Don't you dare fall asleep on me you have to stay awake!" Sasuke said slightly shaking her as her eyes were fighting to stay open.

"Do your best Sasuke." Akina whispered as the darkness took total control of her mind. Sasuke didn't want to admit it but he was slightly scared when her eyes dropped closed and she became limp in his arms. Sasuke gently laid her down and looked at Haku who had watched the scene from his mirror. Sasuke glared hard at him with hatred and determination blazing in his Sharingan. Sasuke stepped in front of Akina and performed hand signs.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Haku easily transported to a different mirror but Sasuke followed his movements releasing fireball after fireball.

'Seeing his teammate falling before him seems to have given him new determination. He now has the desire to kill.' Haku thought as he appeared behind Sasuke and released needles. Sasuke easily turned around and blocked the needle attack. This continued on for a few minutes; Haku moving around his mirrors trying to throw Sasuke off but Sasuke blocked his attacks every time. The attacks seemed to slower to Sasuke though. Haku was losing too much chakra and he was almost at his limit.

'I'm sorry Zabuza it seems like I won't have much chakra to help you against Kakashi. Don't worry I'll end this.' Haku thought as he resorted to his last strategy. Haku left the safety of his mirrors and headed straight for Sasuke.

'I'll take you down now!' Sasuke thought as he waited. Haku was about a foot away from him when he went around Sasuke.

'What?!' Sasuke thought as he watched Haku pass him by. Sasuke ran after him before he could reach his destination. He grabbed Haku's arm and threw him into one of his mirrors, ignoring the instant pain in his chest.

Naruto could hear that the fight was going on but he was so tired in too much pain to really follow what was going on but when he began to open his eyes he saw Sasuke standing in front of him and Haku lying face down on the ground a few feet away.

'He did it?' Naruto thought as he pushed himself up slowly with a smile on his face.

"Hey Sasuke you did it! You totally took that guy out." Naruto's smile was short lived when Sasuke turned to face him. Sasuke had blood coming out of his mouth and he looked so tired and… dead.

"Seems like your timing is getting as bad as Kakashi's. And you're still getting in my way." Sasuke said with his usual attitude but it sounded like he couldn't put any real effort into his words.

"Well it's not like I asked you to watch out for me! I didn't ask you to save me!" Naruto yelled out not believing what he was seeing.

"Well I did. My body moved on its own without me thinking." Sasuke had never felt so physically weak as he did in that moment and he even felt calm. Suddenly his world became off balanced and he fell backwards. Naruto quickly got up and caught Sasuke before he could hit the ground.

"My brother is still out there and I promised my self that I would never rest until I killed him. Naruto don't let your dream die." Darkness consumed Sasuke's mind and he gladly drifted into its warm embrace. Naruto's body became rigid. Sasuke had stopped breathing and his eyes were closed shut. Naruto couldn't believe that his rival, a friend, was lying dead in his arms. Sure he acted like he despised Sasuke's very being but Naruto truly looked up to Sasuke in a way he would think a brother would. He wanted to be able to do what Sasuke could and better. Naruto felt as if his world was crumbling away.

"Akina! Akina! I need you! Where you?" Naruto screamed at as he looked around but when he looked behind him he almost cried. Akina was lying on her side with blood staining her hair and her face. She looked so pale and Naruto couldn't tell if she was breathing or not. Naruto reached out to touch her and when he did he pulled his hand back as if he had been burned. Akina was unnaturally cold. In the short time that Naruto had met Akina he felt as if she had been there his entire life. She immediately accepted him as her friend and even when she found out he had a demon trapped inside of him she didn't run. She didn't change the way she interacted with him at all. For days, after the incident, he waited for the look of hatred and disgust to fill her eyes, the same look everyone in the village gave him his entire life. She looked at him with a small smile on her face as if he was just another normal person and nothing more.

"Onee-san?" Naruto's voice quivered, tears gathering in his eyes.

'That boy. He knew that it was a trap and yet he rushed in there to save the people who were precious to him. He is truly a ninja worthy of honor.' Haku thought as he got up.

"Is this the first time you've seen someone die before you? This is part of what it means to be a ninja." Naruto looked away from Akina and saw that Haku had stood up.

"Just shut up." Naruto said looking back down at Sasuke and Akina, both of who had dreams that may never be accomplished. The atmosphere became warmer around Naruto as a circle of steam enveloped him and his friends. Haku didn't understand where this heat was coming from as he stepped back into his mirror. The circle of steam escalated to a spiral of fiery orange chakra. The chakra was so strong that it was creating long scars on the bridge. Haku watched as the bent over form of Naruto was shaking as if he was trying to control something. Naruto felt nothing but rage fill his every fiber and the bloodlust that was taking control over his every thought.

Kill him.

Naruto didn't know what dark voice was saying this; he didn't care, because that was exactly what he wanted to do. Naruto's eyes were no longer the gentle sea blue he was born with. Now they were a deep crimson red that wished for nothing but violence and blood. The spiral of chakra became larger as Naruto stood up.

'What is this? Chakra can't be seen and yet it's clearly visible. It's something ghastly almost like evil itself.' Haku wondered. Above Naruto's head the chakra gathered and transformed into an image of a fox just as demonic as Naruto with teal eyes that wished for blood to be shed and white fangs that glittered with glee for the battle about to happen. The needles all over Naruto's body began to pop out as his cuts began to heal in seconds.

'His hands are healing and changing.' Haku noticed as Naruto's nails transformed from little stubs to full on claws. The whiskers on his face were more pronounced and his iris went from round to catlike; adding to his demonic look.

Not too far away Kakashi had stopped when he felt the chakra. Even Zabuza couldn't believe what chakra he was feeling.

'What is that energy? It's something foul. It can't be Kakashi because it's too powerful even for him. Then who is doing this?' Zabuza thought.

'It can't be. But I know that this is the chakra of the Nine-Tails. This is putting Naruto and everyone else in danger. Of all times for the seal to be broken. I have to stop it fast.' Kakashi thought remembering the night the Nine-Tails attacked 12 years ago.

Haku continued to watch, as Naruto was almost finished with his transformation. His hair turned wild and his canines were elongating, becoming more pronounced. The fox head creature let out a roar that Haku could feel in his bones and disappeared into the sky. When it was done Naruto was in a crouch and looked straight at Haku.

"I'm gonna kill you."

I hope everybody enjoyed this chapter! The next chapter will wrap up this arc and soon I'll be moving on to the next one which is my favorite.