Naruto's eyes darkened as he saw Sasuke slump to the cold ground, unconscious. His body was littered with senbon, his breathing shallow.
Haku stood silently within her Demonic Ice Mirrors, watching Naruto's reaction. "I did not take his life. He is only unconscious."
Naruto clenched his fists. His whole body tensed, but deep down, he wasn't angry—he was relieved. Haku wasn't a killer. But that didn't mean he'd let her go unchallenged.
He exhaled, a slow smirk forming on his lips.
"Finally…" He cracked his neck. "Now I can stop holding back."
Haku stiffened slightly. "What do you mean?"
Naruto stomped on the ground, his chakra flaring. The air around him shifted. The faint mist surrounding the bridge swirled unnaturally, as if responding to him.
Inside his mind, Uzuhiko's voice hummed. "Are you sure? This will expose some of your true strength."
Naruto grinned inwardly. "I won't go all out. Just enough to send a message."
Haku's eyes widened slightly as the chakra around Naruto surged. She hadn't expected this level of power.
Wind Style: Gale Step!
Naruto vanished from her vision in a burst of wind.
Haku barely had time to react before a fist collided with the mirror beside her, shattering it into shards.
What? How—?!
Naruto appeared behind her in an instant. He twisted midair, his leg swinging in a sharp arc.
Boom!
Haku barely dodged, flipping through the air and landing inside another mirror. But she wasn't unharmed—her mask had a thin crack running down the center.
"You…" Haku whispered. "You've been holding back?"
Naruto rolled his shoulders. "Obviously. But since you took Sasuke out… I guess it's time to get serious."
Haku took a deep breath and steadied herself.
"You are strong, Naruto-kun." She raised her hands, forming a hand seal. "But I cannot lose."
Naruto smirked. "Then bring it."
The real fight had begun.
Haku exhaled, her fingers forming a hand seal as the shattered ice mirror reformed. She disappeared inside the Demonic Ice Mirrors, her voice calm but firm.
"I will not allow you to win, Naruto-kun."
Naruto narrowed his eyes as Haku's afterimages blurred around him.
"You're fast," he admitted, rolling his shoulders. "But I already figured out your movement pattern."
Inside his mind, Uzuhiko's voice chimed in.
"You're trying to analyze her technique in real-time while pretending to struggle. I see what you're planning, but are you sure you want to show too much?"
Naruto smirked. "I'll only use what I need to. Watch and learn, Uzuhiko."
The ice mirrors flashed. Haku appeared behind him, a senbon aimed for his neck.
Clang!
A kunai met the senbon mid-air, knocking it aside. Naruto twisted and launched himself backward, flipping away from a second barrage.
Wind Style: Whirlwind Step!
A gust of wind propelled him just as another mirror formed behind him. Instead of dodging, he used the wind's momentum to propel himself forward, closing the distance between them in an instant.
Haku's eyes widened.
Naruto thrust his palm forward.
Boom!
A pulse of chakra erupted, disrupting the mirrors around them. Cracks spread across the ice like a spiderweb.
Haku stumbled slightly, barely managing to regain her footing inside another mirror.
"Impossible…" she murmured. "You can keep up with my speed?"
Naruto grinned. "More like… I can read your patterns now."
He vanished.
Haku barely had time to react before a whirlwind of strikes rained down on her mirror, breaking it apart in an explosion of shards.
Crash!
Naruto appeared beside her, his kunai at her throat.
"I win," he said simply.
Haku stared at him, her mask barely holding together. Her heart pounded.
"You… truly are something else," she whispered.
Naruto's eyes softened. "You don't have to do this, Haku. Zabuza doesn't deserve your loyalty."
Haku hesitated. "You wouldn't understand. He gave me a purpose."
Naruto sighed. "Then I'll have to prove you wrong."
Just then—
Naruto tightened the bindings around Haku, but in the process, he subtly placed a restraining seal onto her wrist. She wouldn't notice it immediately, but if she tried anything, the seal would activate, locking her chakra pathways and preventing her from using her jutsu.
"Haku, this is for your own good," Naruto whispered under his breath.
Haku, exhausted and bound, simply stared at him with unreadable eyes.
The End of Zabuza
Meanwhile, Kakashi stood over a weakened Zabuza, ready to strike the final blow. But before he could, a horde of bandits suddenly appeared at the bridge's entrance.
Gatō stood at the center, grinning smugly.
"Hmph. I don't need you anymore, Zabuza," he sneered, kicking the weakened man. "You were just a tool. Now, you're trash."
Zabuza lay on the ground, his body battered and his breathing ragged. His sharp teeth gritted together as he glared up at the man who had betrayed him.
"You're a fool, Gatō," he spat weakly.
Gatō smirked, signaling his mercenaries to attack.
"KILL THEM ALL!"
Before anyone could react—
A massive wave of killing intent flooded the battlefield.
Everyone froze.
Zabuza forced himself onto his feet, his grip tightening on his Kubikiribōchō. A monstrous aura erupted from him.
"Naruto," Zabuza suddenly spoke. "Take care of Haku."
Naruto's eyes widened.
Zabuza took a deep breath. Then—he charged into the crowd of bandits, hacking and slashing like a demon unleashed.
Blood painted the bridge.
Gatō's confident smirk shattered into terror.
"WAIT—STAY BACK—!"
Slice!
Zabuza's blade cleaved through Gatō's body.
The crime lord fell lifelessly into the ocean, his face frozen in horror.
Zabuza, standing amid a pile of corpses, smirked weakly.
Kakashi walked over, seeing Zabuza's body riddled with wounds too severe to survive.
Zabuza coughed up blood, falling to his knees.
"Haku," he muttered, barely able to turn his head toward her.
Naruto quickly released Haku from her bindings, though the restraining seal remained active.
She rushed to Zabuza's side, tears streaming down her face.
"Zabuza-sama…!"
For the first time, Zabuza's gaze softened.
"You were never just my tool," he whispered. "You were always my daughter."
Haku's breath hitched.
Zabuza reached out, gently placing a bloodied hand on her head.
"Live… a life of your own," he murmured, his strength fading fast.
His eyes flickered toward Naruto one last time.
"Take care of her, brat."
Naruto clenched his fists, his chest tightening. "I will," he swore.
Zabuza's breathing slowed… then stopped.
For the first time in years, Haku sobbed openly.
Naruto closed Zabuza's eyes, then stood up.
"The Demon of the Mist… deserves a warrior's farewell," he murmured.
Kakashi nodded, and together, they gave Zabuza a proper burial, overlooking the sea he once ruled as a feared shinobi.
A New Path for Haku
As Team 7 and Tazuna prepared to leave, Naruto turned to Haku.
"You don't have to go back to a life of killing," he said.
Haku wiped her eyes, gazing at the horizon. "...What should I do?"
Naruto smiled softly. "Come with me."
Haku blinked. "...You'd accept me?"
"Zabuza's final wish was for you to live your own life," Naruto replied. "So live it with us."
Haku hesitated for a long moment… then nodded.
And so, as Team 7 left the Land of Waves, Haku walked beside Naruto, stepping into a future she never thought she could have.