Naruto set Sasuke down and walked toward Haku, who was surrounded by the clones.
Haku stood within the last remaining Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystal. The fists of the dozen or so Naruto Shadow Clones surrounding him were already pressed against the surface of the mirror. If he made even the slightest move, this final mirror would instantly shatter.
He looked at the impenetrable encirclement around him, gathered needles between his fingers once more and spread his arms slightly.
The next moment, his figure suddenly began to spin within the Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystal.
Water Release Secret Technique: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death!
Countless needles erupted from Haku as the center, firing outwards in a three-hundred-sixty-degree omnidirectional blast with no blind spots.
Facing this indiscriminate attack, the Shadow Clones remained unhurried.
Some dodged sideways, letting the needles graze past their clothing.
Some raised their hands to gather Chakra, flicking the needles away with the backs of their hands the moment they approached, sending up tiny sparks upon impact.
Some simply leaped into the air, letting a needle pass beneath their feet to be nailed into the ground behind them, lining up in a row.
In the interval of the onslaught, Naruto controlled his Shadow Clones to immediately press forward.
With the enhancement of the Nine-Tails Chakra, the speed at which the Shadow Clones advanced far exceeded what it had been before.
Haku had just finished unleashing his Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death, and before he could even retract his arms, a Shadow Clone had already closed to within an arm's length of him.
Bang!
A fist slammed into Haku's abdomen.
"Ugh..."
Haku let out a muffled groan, his body arching involuntarily.
Immediately following, a second Shadow Clone cut in from the left, punching Haku in the shoulder blade.
A third Shadow Clone circled around from behind and kicked Haku in the back of the knee, forcing him down onto one knee.
Bang... Bang... Bang...
The dull thuds of fists striking flesh rang out continuously, interspersed with the sounds of Shadow Clones being destroyed.
Haku had some skill. Even while being swarmed, he still managed to pop two Shadow Clones with his needles at extremely close range, and even had the energy to drive back another Shadow Clone with a clean elbow strike.
But this changed nothing. There were simply too many Shadow Clones, and the power of each punch, amplified by the Nine-Tails Chakra, was too much for him. Haku's injuries were accumulating rapidly.
Finally, the fist of a Shadow Clone slammed into his mask.
Crack!
With a crisp sound, the mask on Haku's face split down the middle, and fragments fell away
Behind the mask, a face was revealed that was so delicate it did not seem like a man's. Strands of long, black hair had fallen loose due to the shattering of the mask, clinging to his pale cheeks.
Bang!
With a dull thud, Haku's body was sent flying by a punch, rolling twice on the ground before coming to a stop.
Before he could struggle to rise, the remaining Shadow Clones swarmed him, pinning his shoulders, arms, and legs, firmly restraining him to the ground.
The real Naruto walked to Haku's front, looking down at him.
An orphan possessing the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai, picked up by Zabuza from a young age, raised as a tool yet always harboring deep feelings for Zabuza. His kind nature made him fundamentally unsuited to be a ninja, and in the end, he died under Kakashi's Raikiri to save Zabuza.
But at this moment, "he" did not know these things. So Naruto looked at Haku in silence for a moment, then spoke, "So it was you."
Haku looked up at Naruto, a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. There was not much fear in his eyes, but rather a sense of resignation.
He had lost completely.
It was not just a crushing defeat in terms of strength, but a total loss in terms of tempo.
From the moment the Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals were shattered, to being swarmed, to the mask breaking and being restrained, throughout the entire process, he hadn't even managed a few effective counterattacks.
"Stay here and wait for this farce to end." Naruto said after a moment of thought.
Then, he turned his head to look at the battle in the thick fog ahead.
Haku was stunned for a moment, then struggled to speak. "Why?"
"I killed your companion, he was pierced through the entire body by me in order to protect you."
Naruto did not respond.
Sasuke, of course, was not dead. He was only heavily injured and unconscious. But he did not need to explain to Haku, because explaining would lead to questions like "How do you know he isn't dead?" which would only be troublesome. Sometimes, silence is the best answer.
Haku looked at Naruto's calm face, opened his mouth, then lowered his head. His eyes dimmed, and in the end, he said nothing.
Just at this moment, in the thick fog in the distance—
Crack... Zzzzzz...
Even across a distance of dozens of meters and layers of thick fog, the sound of lightning felt as if it were right next to their ears.
'Raikiri...'
The battle between Kakashi and Zabuza had reached its final stage.