The cold of the mirrors bit into Naruto's skin as if he were standing inside a winter storm. Each reflection showed him—a beaten, trembling boy—multiplied into a hundred versions of weakness. The senbon needles stuck into the ground around him like mocking reminders: no matter how much he swung his fists, he was trapped.
Sasuke stood beside him, chest heaving, eyes burning with determination. Thin cuts lined his arms, a crimson trail dripping down his cheek. "Naruto… get it together. If you panic, you'll just die faster."
Naruto gritted his teeth, his fists shaking. "Shut up, teme! I'm not… I'm not panicking!" But his voice cracked at the end, betraying him.
From every mirror, Haku's masked face looked down at them. His tone remained calm, almost sorrowful. "I warned you. I do not wish to kill… but I cannot allow you to stand in our way. Please… surrender before you are broken completely."
"Like hell we'll surrender!" Naruto roared, hurling a kunai at one of the mirrors. The blade clanged and slid down, leaving only a faint scratch that healed instantly as frost rippled across its surface.
Sasuke's breath misted in the cold air. His black eyes tracked the blur of Haku's movements—so fast it was like he dissolved into mist, only to reappear from another angle. Needles rained again.
Naruto cried out as several buried into his shoulder. His vision swam, pain and anger boiling inside him. Sasuke shoved him aside, taking the brunt of the next volley.
"Damn it, Naruto!" Sasuke spat, his chest rising and falling. "If you're just gonna stand there whining, stay out of my way!"
Naruto's stomach twisted. He wanted to shout back, but the words wouldn't form. All he could do was glare at the mirrors surrounding him, his fists tightening until his nails dug into his palms.
Why… why can't I hit him? Why am I so weak?
Images flashed in his mind—Iruka smiling despite the wound on his back, Inari's tearful eyes begging someone to protect his mother, Kakashi standing fearlessly against Zabuza. And then… his younger self, alone on the swing, watching other kids walk away.
Something inside Naruto cracked.
---
Haku watched quietly through the mask, his heart heavy. Every strike landed with precision, but guilt tightened his chest. Forgive me… I must do this. For Zabuza-sama.
He prepared another volley, but something shifted.
Naruto's chakra, usually wild and clumsy, flared suddenly—burning red like embers bursting into flame. The air thickened. The ice closest to him began to hiss as if scorched by invisible fire.
Sasuke's eyes widened. "W-What the hell…?!"
Naruto rose slowly, his wounds steaming as if the very energy pouring from his body rejected them. His eyes glowed faintly, the blue replaced by a deep, haunting red.
Haku's breath caught. This chakra… this is not normal.
Naruto's voice came out lower, edged with something primal. "I told you… I'm not gonna lose."
He lunged forward with speed that startled even Haku. The dome rippled as Naruto slammed his fist into one of the mirrors. For the first time, the surface cracked—not much, but enough to send spiderweb fractures across it.
Haku's composure wavered. Impossible… no one has ever broken my mirrors before.
"Dobe…" Sasuke muttered, staring at him, shock mixed with something else. What… what are you?
---
Meanwhile, outside the dome, the mist throbbed with the clash of titans. Kakashi and Zabuza's blades sparked again and again, each strike threatening to end in blood. Tazuna and the workers huddled behind Sakura, who tried to keep her shaking hands steady.
But even from there, Kakashi felt it—the sinister chakra swelling inside the ice dome. His single visible eye narrowed. Naruto…
---
Inside, Haku launched himself between mirrors faster than ever, senbon raining like steel rain. Yet Naruto's body blurred, moving with raw instinct, slapping away needles that should have pierced his skin.
"Try harder!" Naruto roared, his voice echoing with power not his own.
Haku clenched his teeth, his mask cracking at the corner from the force of his movements. "This chakra… it's dangerous."
Sasuke, still bleeding but refusing to fall, forced his body to keep up. He darted in sync with Naruto, covering angles, their unspoken teamwork shining through the chaos. For the first time, they weren't fighting against each other—they were fighting together.
Naruto charged again, fist slamming into another mirror. This time it shattered completely, shards raining to the ground in a crystalline storm.
The dome flickered, several mirrors destabilizing.
Haku landed lightly on one of the remaining panels, his chest rising faster now. He stared at Naruto, a strange mixture of awe and sadness in his eyes. "You… you're not like the others. You carry a power that should not exist."
Naruto's eyes narrowed, the red glow intensifying. "I don't care what I carry. I won't let you hurt my friends!"
His voice shook the cage, his chakra boiling outward, rattling every mirror at once.
---
Haku's silence stretched, but behind the mask his heart ached. He could see it—the boy who had been shunned, who carried unbearable loneliness. It was a reflection of himself.
We are alike… yet destined to stand on opposite sides.
As the mirrors trembled, Haku whispered one last vow beneath his breath.
"If this is my end… then so be it."
And he vanished into a storm of mirrors and steel, preparing to unleash everything he had.
---
✨ End of Chapter 16 ✨