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#18 Divine Reward System
🕑 Added 2025-02-22 04:49:50 +0000 UTCHaku gazed at Sasuke and Naruto trapped within the ice mirrors, his voice calm yet firm.
“There’s no point in struggling."
“My movements are reflected through the mirrors. From my perspective, you two are practically standing still.”
Sasuke clenched his fists, his mind racing. Haku’s words stuck with him, but instead of letting frustration take over, he analyzed the situation. After a brief moment of deep thought, he turned to Naruto and spoke in a low voice.
“Naruto, listen. If these are all mirrors, then only one of them has the real Haku. The rest are just reflections.”
Naruto frowned. “Yeah, so what do we do?”
“We find the real one,” Sasuke said, eyes narrowing. “If we can track his movements and strike when he switches between mirrors, we might have a shot at breaking through this jutsu!”
Naruto nodded in understanding. But before they could act, Haku, realizing they were strategizing, decided to strike first.
“I can’t give you time to figure this out,” Haku said, his voice steady. “I have to end this now.”
With a sudden surge of speed, Haku launched another barrage of silver senbon needles.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Sasuke and Naruto moved in unison. This time, Naruto deployed his shadow clones to create openings, while Sasuke focused on tracking Haku's movement.
“Now!” Sasuke yelled, forming hand seals quickly.
[Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!]
A massive fireball shot toward Haku. While Haku managed to avoid a direct hit, the intense flames licked at the edge of his robe, burning off a piece of fabric.
For the first time, Haku looked mildly surprised.
Naruto grinned. “Ha! We almost got him!”
Sasuke smirked. “We’re close. We just need to keep pressing him.”
They could feel it now—Haku’s pattern, his movements. The more they worked together, the better they understood his rhythm.
Haku exhaled, momentarily impressed. “You’re actually tracking me with just your eyes? Interesting.”
What he didn’t realize was that Sasuke's Sharingan was slowly awakening, the bloodline power inside him responding to the intensity of battle.
However, Haku had no intention of giving them any more chances.
“I can’t afford to waste time,” Haku muttered. His speed suddenly increased, completely overwhelming Naruto and Sasuke’s initial strategy. Within moments, their plan fell apart.
Seeing their disadvantage, Sasuke turned to Naruto.
“Naruto, we can’t win like this!” he shouted.
“Then what do we do?!” Naruto shot back, panting.
Sasuke clenched his teeth. “I’ll create an opening. You escape and attack from the outside!”
Naruto hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Got it!”
With determination, Naruto charged towards the edge of the mirror prison, but Haku was too fast. In an instant, Haku moved to intercept, cutting off his path.
“I don’t have time to play with you anymore,” Haku declared, raising his hands. “Just fall here!”
A deadly storm of silver needles shot out in every direction.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Naruto’s eyes widened. He didn’t think—he simply moved. Without hesitation, he threw himself in front of Sasuke, taking the brunt of the attack. His body jerked as dozens of needles pierced his flesh.
“Naruto!” Sasuke’s voice rang out in shock.
Naruto coughed, his body trembling. He collapsed onto the icy floor, his chakra nearly drained. Even with the Nine-Tails' healing, he wouldn’t be getting back up anytime soon.
Sasuke froze, staring at his fallen comrade. His fists clenched so hard his nails dug into his palms.
'You idiot Naruto... Why, why did you protect me!?'
Something inside him snapped.
“You...” Sasuke muttered returning his gaze towards Haku, his voice low and dangerous. “Now you've done it...”
Haku watched as Sasuke lifted his head, revealing his eyes.
The Sharingan had fully awakened.
“What?!” Haku was genuinely taken aback.
Sasuke’s red eyes locked onto him, the black tomoe swirling within them. He moved—and this time, he saw it. Haku's movements, his shifting between mirrors, his attacks. Everything was clear.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Sasuke dodged every single senbon needle with ease, his movements now completely in sync with Haku’s.
“This is...” Haku whispered in disbelief. “Sharingan...”
But despite his newfound power, Sasuke's chakra reserves were running dangerously low. If this continued, he would collapse just like Naruto.
Outside the ice mirrors, Tazuna, watching the fight unfold, turned to Tatsuya.
“Hey, kid, your friends are in trouble. Aren’t you gonna help them?”
Tatsuya smirked. “I’ve seen what I needed to see. Now, it’s time to step in.”
He slowly stepped toward the battlefield.
Back inside the mirror prison, Haku made a quick decision. If Sasuke could predict his attacks, he would change his approach. He turned his attention to the unconscious Naruto.
“If you can see my attacks now, then I’ll just target someone who can’t dodge.”
Sasuke's eyes widened in horror as Haku launched a rain of needles directly at Naruto’s defenseless body.
“No!” Sasuke shouted. He pushed his exhausted body beyond its limits, throwing himself in front of Naruto.
He braced for the impact—
Clink!
The needles stopped mid-air.
They hung there, frozen in place, as if caught by an invisible force.
Haku’s eyes widened. “What... what is this?!”
Sasuke, equally shocked, turned to see a new figure stepping through the ice mirrors.
It was Tatsuya.
