Both boy's were hurt horribly, but were blankly able to stand it as they realized Sakura's voice had been intermingled with Minari's. What was happening to her? Where was she? This definatly could not be good. Naruto, laying in a heep of bumbs and senbons, weakly got out, "Sakura's in trouble..." He slowly got to his feet. "I'll bust us out of here and get Minari back." Sasuke was impressed by his strength, his sure will to succeed. "I'll fake him out." He said with a smile.
"No! Stop it! You're going to get youself killed!" Minari yelled in despiration.
"You've exauhsted my pationce." Haku said menicingly, holding her tighter. She couldn't believe it. Naruto was running again to the spaces between the mirrors, but the minute Haku appeared he stopped and propelled himself backward, running in the opposite direction with Haku following in the mirrors close behind. Minari slammed on the mirror surface with her fists, wanting with all her heart to be free and help her new team. She wouldn't allow there to be a repeat of last time. No. This time, she would make sure they stayed alive. Even if it meant giving up her own life in return.
"Naruto, behind you!" Sasuke yelled as Haku threw a handful of senbon, hitting him hard and to the ground. "Naruto!"
"Your chance of escaping my house of mirrors is zero." Haku said. "That is absolute."
"Over my dead and frozen body!" Minari yelled as she made her hand signs. "Sasuke! Keep yourself and Naruto alive!" She said it with such furosity, such intensity, that he bagan to feel the care that radiated off of her when he began to trust her once again. So he nodded and switched his attention to Naruto.
"Naruto, are you able to get up?" He asked as his teammate struggled. "Try not to use anymore chakara. That's only gong to help him now."
He got to his knees slowly and painfully. "I know Sasuke, I know." He got out before he collapsed again. It was to much for them, they couldn't keep going on like this. Not with him countering every move they made. There had to be someway to out maneuver him, especially with Sasuke's eyes finally catching up and learning how to follow his movements.
But Haku's light chuckle floated around them. "Looking for a counter attack?" He asked, appearing in the mirror before Sasuke. "I'll save you the trouble." He moved from mirror to mirror, throwing senbon at, Minari noticed, Sasuke vitals. She dropped her ocarina in surprise, loosing all focus and chakara pressure she had been building for slow sound. But Sasuke was fast. He picked up one of the fallen senbon and successfully blocked every attack.
"Get up looser, we've gotta team up!" But Naruto was unable to get up, barly able to attempt the push he made.
"Naruto..." Upon hearing Minari's broken hearted call of his name, Naruto was able to push his way up to a sitting possition.
"I know what we need to do Sasuke, believe it." Haku appeared in mirror after mirror, attacking as best he could, but to no avail. Sasuke wasn't just fighting to win anymore, he was fighting to protect his friend. And this realisation brought on a wave of joy in Minari's heart so powerful that for a moment, she believed she might cry. But there would be plunty of time to cry in happiness when this was all over.
Sasuke was dodging at increadible speeds, but Minari's heart began to drop when she realized he wasn't unlocking his ability fast enough. Come on Sasuke. You've got it in you to unlock your true potential. You can do this. But Minari knew there was no helping them as long as Haku had her trapped in the mirrors. And Sasuke and Naruto weren't doing very well on their own. She picked up the ocarina again and made her hand signs, building the chakra. But Haku was determined to end this quickly. His image vanished from the mirrors, taking Sasuke aback.
"Naruto, you better not pass out again. Come on, lets go! I can't keep protecting you like this!" Sasuke's voice held urgency, fear, panic.
"Well then don't. I never asked for your help." And with that in the air, Naruto fell back unconscious.
"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.
Oblivious to the severaty of the situation, Naruto's happy voice floated. "You beat him Sasuke!" Finally though, he seemed to catch just how badly hurt Sasuke was, his face falling. Minari kneeled down and helped Naruto into a sitting position catching the blonde off guard and surprised once again, but he couldn't tear his gaze away from Sasuke. Why?
"You should see the look on your face." He said painfully. "You look like a total loser."
Naruto hopped up instantly. "Why-why did you... save me?" Naruto asked, the pain in his heart becoming evident on his face, and Minari couldn't stand the look, turning her own gaze away from them as she bit her lip to keep from breaking down.
"I don't know why. I just... did." Sasuke tried to explain. Memories flew into his mind, memories of him and Naruto. Training, fighting, teasing. Why did Sasuke save him? Naruto was a pain in the ass and always did before thinking. But for some reason this particular scenario reminded him of the story Minari told him of her first team. They failed the mission and lost their lives. But they did it to save Minari. That day... his thought process was they should have fled, allowing themselves to finish the mission. Shinobi die everyday. He didn't know though... he didn't know. And Minari had been right. They died honorably, because they saved her instead of leaving her to die.
He looked down at the ground and smiled pitifully. "You." He said lowly. "I hated you."
"Then why? It doesn't make any sense." But Minari knew why. "Why did you protect me?" But Sasuke was silent, unknowing himself. Naruto grew angry though, confused, hurt, wrapped up and bursting forth. "I didn't ask for this!" He yelled. "I didn't ask you to save me!"
"I don't know." Sasuke croaked, a tear building in his eye. "My body just moved. There was no time to think." He began to lose his grip on reality and fell back, but still managed to get out one more word. "Loser." Minari and Naruto both rushed forward to catch him, Naruto supporting most of his body while Minari rested his head in her lap. He looked worse than ever and it scared her.
"Sasuke." Naruto called desperately, trying to get his friend to stay conscious if only for a little while longer. But Sasuke could it, and he had something he had to say.
"He- He's still out there. My brother." Minari took in a small sharp breath at the mention of the man. "I promised myself that I'd stay alive until I killed him." With all the strength he could muster, Sasuke lifted his hand toward Naruto's face. "Don't let your dream die."
His hand fell and both teammates watched as he closed his eyes and let out a final breath. Tears brimmed in Naruto's eyes as he looked down at him. Pain. His heart was in pain. It beat faster and felt like it was being ripped in two. He held Sasuke's body closer to him, finding it easy to take him from Minari's hands as well as she looked down at her hands. Those useless hands. No matter how hard she tried, she could never protect anyone. What good was all that training, all the traveling, all of those god forsaken years she spent devoted to learning if she wasn't even able to protect those she cared about.
Haku stood against his mirror and watched them, feeling inside him a sense of understanding. But this battle had yet to end. "Is this the first time you've seen a friend die in battle? This is part of what it means to be a true ninja." Haku stated, dissolving back into the mirror.
"Shut up." Naruto said softly. Almost like a child who was being picked on and was to tired to fight back. He handed the whole of Sasuke to Minari, "I hated you to Sasuke. And yet..." Minari could feel a power, large, uncanny. She was frightened of this raw power she could feel surrounding them, it was like nothing she had ever felt before in her life. "You'll pay for this." The power grew and Minari unconsciously held Sasuke closer to her... breath... it was faint... but she just felt breath on her neck. Sasuke is still alive.
Soon that power became visible, a red swirling torrent of chakra and hate. Naruto was crouched close to the ground, his face down. A low, animal like growl escaped him, his head snapping up and fear racing across Minari's entire body. Naruto was... "I'm gonna kill you." The sound of his voice was feral and spine tingling. She had heard about the nine tails power, but never did she think it was this intense. She had been around other jinchuriki's before, befriended and trained with them, so she knew how strong they could be. But this...
She clutched Sasuke tighter, eyes wide and glued to Naruto as he stood and turned to face Haku. She couldn't look away, even though her fear was growing by ten fold every second. Finding her voice Minari was able to croak out a few shaky and mousy words. "Dad. Uncle. Help."
Almost as if hearing her words both men stopped, shortly after they felt the immense chakra energy. Kakashi was confused. This energy, he knew it well, but couldn't believe it. Zabuza was confused as well. Was Kakashi doing this? He couldn't tell. But he did know that this power was not something he wanted to face willingly.
Naruto continued to let out low, feral growls, the marks on his face becoming more prominent, his hands becoming like claws, his eyes narrowing and red. And then he attacked with a blinding speed and hatred that neither Haku nor Minari had ever seen before. Haku threw his senbon but watched as Naruto was able dodge them easily. And then he did something no one had ever done before. He broke a mirror. The mirror shattered and Haku dived down with weapons ready to strike Naruto. But once again he was out of harms way in time.
Looking up Haku knew he had to get to a mirror fast. But before he could his wrist was caught by Naruto and he was pulled around. The immense power. It was to much for Haku to handle. Minari set Sasuke on the ground gently, never taking her eyes off the two. In one power filled blast, Naruto's fist connected with Haku's masked face sending him flying through a mirror, shattering it, and to the ground outside, hitting hard. Minari stood and looked out to her friend with worry.
Soon the mirrors shattered and the melting pieces fell to the ground. Haku's mask was cracked, and as Naruto ran at him, ready to deliver another hit, a final hit, the mask began to fall away from his face. In his heart Haku was apologizing. He couldn't beat him and he had failed his master. The look in the eyes of her oldest and dearest friend hit Minari hard, forcing out her call to Naruto. Desperate, heartbreaking, it sliced through Naruto the minute he heard her voice ring out. "No! Don't kill him!"
His fist stopped an inch away from Haku's face.