After all, in the real world, there's no such thing as artificially creating reefs—so there's no precedent for the series of events that followed. This time...
She'd gained some experience. If there's a next time, she'd definitely have to consider that ships hitting the reefs might prematurely reveal that the reefs were man-made.
Lifting her head, Hinata's white eyes gleamed with a curious light. She slung her bag over her shoulder and lightly stepped out of her room.
Their one-week mission in the Land of Waves was over. Which meant—it was time to leave.
"Um... Miss Hinata, are you leaving already?"
Tazuna's daughter, who had just helped Hinata tidy her outfit, looked at her with clear reluctance. Hinata, however, gave her a strange smile. "Relax. After today, that idiot Gato probably won't be bothering you again. Your husband's killer—he'll be avenged soon."
"Huh?"
Caught off guard, Tazuna's daughter clearly didn't understand what Hinata meant. But Hinata didn't bother explaining—she casually walked down the stairs to meet up with her teammates.
"Today's the last day of bridge construction. If Gato plans to make a move, this is his final chance."
Tazuna's expression was grim. If Gato showed up today, it likely meant his own death was coming. Sure, the Konoha ninja had protected him this past week, but they'd already gone above and beyond. His original mission had only been to escort him back to the country. They hadn't just ignored his lies about the mission rank—they'd guarded him for an entire week. That was more than enough.
"Yeah. And if Zabuza's going to appear, it'll be today."
Kakashi's nerves were taut. As a jōnin, he could sense the shift in atmosphere—like the split-second before a paper bomb goes off.
"With the sea blocked, the only way out now is the bridge, right?"
Sasuke clearly shared Kakashi's intuition. Though his senses weren't as sharp, something about the air didn't sit right with him… something deeper and harder to explain.
Glancing around instinctively, his gaze paused. Perched silently on a nearby tree branch was a black crow with glowing red eyes. Sasuke felt a surge of vague, unsettled emotion.
"Ahh~ We've been out for a while now, haven't we? I really miss Ichiraku Ramen~ Mm mm~~"
Compared to Kakashi and Sasuke, Naruto was the most relaxed of the group. Still, neither of them scolded him. Even in tense situations, you needed a loudmouthed idiot to break the mood a little.
"Well, as agreed, we'll go with you to the bridge. Once the final piece is complete—it's goodbye."
Tightening the straps on her shinobi sandals, Hinata stood and lightly tapped her toes. Her mindset was clearly different from Kakashi or Naruto. For her, this was a moment of... harvesting?
"Right, we'll be counting on you. At the very least, the bridge should be preserved for the Land of Waves. I don't know how those reefs appeared, but with them around, that bastard Gato probably won't be able to destroy it so easily."
Tazuna exhaled deeply, adjusting his mindset. From now on, his life was dedicated to this bridge. If the bridge was completed, then so was the mission he had given himself.
"Heh..."
Hinata gave a slight smirk but didn't respond. The group immediately headed for the bridge. According to the plan, while progress had been slightly delayed due to materials being held up at sea, the sudden appearance of dangerous reefs had sparked urgency among the craftsmen. Many had even donated materials from their own homes, and the project was now slightly ahead of schedule.
The bridge had been under construction for several years already, so it had grown into a full-scale single-span bridge, built to span the strait. Its quality needed no questioning. But as the group approached the bridge's entrance, everyone's nerves tensed sharply.
"Hey~ everyone—!"
Tazuna's voice shook. Thick white mist swirled at the bridge's entrance like layers of spiderwebs. Several workers lay sprawled on the ground—injured but still breathing.
"Looks like they don't plan to let us go quietly. Zabuza—come out."
Kakashi tugged up his forehead protector, his voice low and sharp. A cold chuckle echoed through the mist.
"I didn't want it to come to this... but now that this bridge is the only way in or out, there's no way I'm letting you have it."
"Huh? It's the bandage guy again! Oi oi~ You go your way, we go ours. What's the point of blocking us?"
Naruto clenched his fist, recognizing Zabuza's voice and barking in frustration. Zabuza chuckled again.
"Heh, still a rookie, huh? Let me ask you—when two opposing groups meet on the same bridge, how can one ensure that the other side doesn't double back and attack after they've crossed?"
"There's only one answer..."
"That is—take out the enemy first. Strike while you can, brat!!"
As the rogue Mist ninja's voice echoed out, the mist thickened, quickly drowning everything in a dense white fog where even your own hand vanished from sight.
"Hmph. Cheap tricks."
Hinata snorted softly. Veins bulged around her eyes as her Byakugan activated. Through the swirling fog, she instantly spotted Zabuza's real body. "Target is about twenty meters ahead. He's surrounded by five—no, seven water clones. And... wait—another one is—huh?"
"Makyou Hyōshō!" (Demonic Ice Mirror!)
A sharp voice rang out. A strange frost began forming in the air above Hinata's head, crystallizing into a clear mirror. A figure appeared within—like a reflection stepping out of glass—and with a flick of their wrist, dozens of sharp senbon needles shot toward her in a sweeping barrage!
Tch! So this bloodline isn't just about making ice—it's a lot more complicated than that!
Instantly grasping the tactic, Hinata darted backward to dodge the senbon—only to find several more mirrors forming around her in an instant. She was trapped in a prison of ice mirrors!
"Hinata!"
Naruto shouted and lunged, but Sasuke quickly grabbed him. "Idiot! Look around first!!"
As if to punctuate his words, Zabuza's water clones charged them. Naruto cursed and gritted his teeth.
"Dammit! You jerks—!!"
"Well then, Kakashi. The kids are occupied. Time to show me what you can really do."
Zabuza's chilling voice made Kakashi narrow his eyes. Now that Naruto and Sasuke were busy with clones, it was up to him to handle Zabuza directly. But with Hinata trapped in the Makyou Hyōshō, they'd have to end this fast.
Inside the crystal mirror dome, Hinata's Byakugan flickered. The mirror prison was undoubtedly formed by chakra-infused ice, but the internal balance was incredibly stable—there were no weak points in the chakra flow. Which meant breaking it from within wouldn't be easy.
"So this is the power of the Ice Release bloodline? Not just freezing water into ice—but some kind of mirror trick, too?"
Her surprise was justified. When she activated the Byakugan earlier, she'd clearly seen Haku standing dozens of meters behind her. But once the mirrors appeared above, Haku had instantly reappeared through the mirror as if teleporting.
Based on her understanding, this Makyou Hyōshō might very well be capable of high-speed movement via mirror reflection—similar to a teleportation jutsu.
"This is my Ice Release. It's nothing special... but as a tool, it serves its purpose."
Haku's figure emerged from a mirror, calm and cold. She didn't seem especially hostile toward Hinata.
"Your fire-style jutsu may be powerful, but it's no match for my Ice Release."
"Is that so? You may not mean anything personal—but allow me to return the courtesy with a statement of my own..."
Raising her right hand, Hinata pointed directly at Haku. Her lips curled into a cold, sharp smile.
"I really want—"
"—to make you mine!!"
"Me?"
Haku was briefly surprised, but quickly composed herself. From the unmistakable hunger in the white-eyed girl's tone, she understood exactly what Hinata meant.
"This power—Ice Release—is that what you're after?"
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Author Notes:
(PS2): Haku's Makyou Hyōshō is seriously overpowered. It's basically the same as Kizaru's Yasakani no Magatama reflection teleport from One Piece. If Naruto hadn't gone Nine-Tails mode for that plot-kill, it'd probably have been game over~ If you gave Haku Senju cells for extra chakra, this could evolve into Makyou Labyrinth.
(PS3): And seriously~~ you guys really think Haku's a guy?? Don't joke like that, come on~ (≧▽≦)/~ whispers: Even if he is, looking like that... ugh... maybe it's not a problem~
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