The First Part Last ~Naruto Fan-fic~

Chapter 14

"Naruto!"

"Sasuke, stop!" Minari caught his attention. "Don't panic, stop for a second and focus." He didn't understand. Of all people he thought Minari would be the most worried about the unconscious, obviously hurt knucklehead, but yet she was telling him to stop? She brought the ocarina up, ready to help. "Naruto will be okay. He's a trooper."

"Don't encourage him, Minari." Haku's voice said. "He can't come out of this, he's reached his limits." Sasuke glared, rawring to go and pay back what this fiend has done to his teammates. He looked up to see the image of Haku and threw the senbon in his hand. But Haku only chuckled in response. He didn't even seem to care that Minari had begun to play her ocarina in an attempt to slow his movements. "Impressive. You have excellent moves. Your attacks are very skillful." Haku threw more senbon, but Sasuke only weakly dodged. "But you've reached your limits as well." His image changed mirrors with every word. "Motor functions. Reflexes. judgment. Your abilities are weakening slowly but surely. Now you're finished!"

Focus. Sasuke knew he had to focus, like Minari said. Stay calm, don't panic. Focus on everything. See everything. Every move that Haku made was tracked in his mind, and finally the moment came. Like slow motion, the needles flew and Sasuke grabbed Naruto, jumping up and out of the way in time to dodge his attack. Minari smiled around the mouth piece of her ocarina as she continued to play, but now only because she wanted to finish the song, thinking that perhaps at this point the very fact she was still playing would provide a placebo effect for her teammate.

Haku on the other hand was very confused and not at all happy that Sasuke was able to see his moves. There is no way that he could do that. Both of them looked out to the worn out Sasuke, his head down as he huffed and attempted to catch his breath. He dropped Naruto the ground unceremoniously and continued to huff. But Minari could see a change in his stance. Did he...? Sasuke lifted his head, and proudly displayed the crimson red eyes of the sharingan. He had done it!

But Minari could see it was incomplete. Half a sharingan is pretty damn good though in her eyes. Now she would have to see if he could use it. Minari chuckled lightly. "You recognize those, don't you Haku." It wasn't a question. He tensed next to her. "You're nearing your limit Haku. I know you are. You can't hold out anymore." She looked up to him with a small yet very friendly and soft smile. One he wouldn't have expected her to give given the circumstances. He watched as she put her ocarina in her weapons pouch and held out her hands in a harmless gesture. "Please, stop the fight. You can't keep going at him and last now that he's unlocked his sharingan. Give up." And then softly, she added. "I don't want to have to add your name to my arm or your headband to my box. Please."

Her words touched something in him. He knew what that all meant and knew what terrible pain it would bring her if she did any of that. Minari was right, he couldn't keep attacking Sasuke now and last much longer, this ability takes to much energy. But then he noticed the orange blob on the ground and knew what he had to do if he wanted to win against the sharingan user. "Sorry." Was all he said to her before lifting his senbon and shifting out of the mirror, aimed at Naruto.

This time, however, Minari wrapped her arms around Haku's middle, freeing herself from the mirror and dropping to the ground from the force of the speed he had. "Naruto!" Sasuke yelled. She looked up and in one fleeting move Haku was able to send senbon into Sasuke's heart. He managed to protect his friend. But in that same move Sasuke was able to catch his hands and send him flying into the mirror, sending him to the ground. He's spent. Poor guy, Minari thought. But she pushed herself up and ran to Sasuke and Naruto. Naruto slowly came to and looked up, seeing Haku on the ground.

"You always get in the way Naruto." Sasuke managed to get out weakly. "It never fails." Minari's face was one of pure unsheltered sadness as she looked over her teammate. She wasn't sure if he could survive these injuries. But there was no way his headband was becoming part of her collection. She wouldn't allow her team to die, not again.