The Sharingan Awakens!

As long as he chose to meet me head-on, there was no way I couldn't take him down.

"Die!" Keiichi suddenly pushed off the ground and used the Body Flicker Technique to appear right in front of Haku, slashing upward with his Kunai.

Haku's body abruptly bent backward, dodging the attack. But another figure suddenly leaped out of Keiichi and circled around behind Haku, intent on stabbing him in the back.

Shadow Clone Technique!

But although the Kunai pierced Haku's body, it met almost no resistance. Keiichi could only watch as Haku's body suddenly dissolved into a puff of mist. It was nothing but an illusion!

He suddenly understood. This must have been some sort of Genjutsu Haku had used—an image projected through the reflection of ice crystals, much like a mirage!

Unfortunately, Keiichi knew far too little about Genjutsu. Even the system's evaluation gave him a measly 1 point, so he hadn't seen through it at all.

Wasn't Haku being a little too confident? I was almost at their hideout. Shouldn't he be panicking by now? Instead, he was only using a Genjutsu to deal with me!

Hmph. Then don't blame me for being ruthless!

Just as Keiichi was about to enter the building and take Zabuza's life, he found that he couldn't move. At some point, a thick layer of ice had covered the ground, and his legs were trapped inside it, impossible to pull free.

Clearly, Haku had set a trap and then used Genjutsu to lure him into it.

Haku must have laid the trap as soon as he noticed Keiichi's Shadow Clone, and Keiichi had walked right into it!

I let my guard down!

He had also underestimated Haku's strength. Haku had restrained him with such ease! Keiichi couldn't help feeling a little dejected.

If Haku hit him with a Pear Blossom Needle Rain now, he'd be nothing more than a target!

Keiichi had already started searching the Exchange Shop, looking for something that could save his life.

But just then, he heard the sounds of fighting in the distance, along with Naruto's shouting. Haku had clearly engaged Naruto and the others.

He hadn't expected Haku to look down on him so much—to not consider him a threat at all!

Keiichi didn't feel relieved to have survived. He only felt insulted!

[Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique]!

Ignoring the risk of burning himself, Keiichi unleashed a fierce barrage of fire at the ice around his feet. He had just told Sasuke that Fire Style couldn't counter Ice Style, but right now, he couldn't afford to care.

The fighting in the distance grew more and more intense. He could faintly hear Sasuke and Naruto crying out in pain. Keiichi grew increasingly anxious. In theory, the Child of Prophecy couldn't die here, but if it actually happened, everything would be over.

As the person most responsible, he would inevitably be hunted by the Leaf Village.

The seconds ticked by. The cries of pain gradually died down, and even the sounds of fighting grew weaker. Was the battle already over?

Keiichi finally broke free of the ice prison. He now had two choices: enter the building and assassinate Zabuza, or go help Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.

Without the slightest hesitation, he turned and hurried toward the sounds. He couldn't be sure whether Haku had laid any traps inside the building.

After only a couple of steps, he saw a familiar sight. Dozens of ice mirrors surrounded them, forming a cage that had trapped the three of them. Haku darted freely among the mirrors, continually firing Steel Needles from his hands.

[Ice Style Secret Technique: Demonic Mirror Ice Crystals]!

This was the most powerful secret technique of Ice Style, a Kekkei Genkai. It was almost impossible to counter!

But the situation was much better than Keiichi had expected. Although all three looked seriously injured, Sasuke had managed to hold his ground.

At some point, he had awakened the Two-Tomoe Sharingan!

In fact, he had awakened the One-Tomoe Sharingan when he witnessed the massacre of his clan at the age of seven. But he had never known how to use it.

Only during this life-or-death battle with Haku, under the pressure of mortal danger, had he gradually started to see the Steel Needles' trajectories. At last, he had advanced another step and awakened the Two-Tomoe Sharingan!

Now he could effortlessly fend off attacks coming at him from every direction, cutting down the flying needles one by one. This technique was called Cutting Edge!

The protagonist was a protagonist, after all. Keiichi's worries had been completely unnecessary!

At this point, Haku could only try to wear down Sasuke's stamina this way, while Sasuke hoped Haku would run out of chakra first. It all came down to which of them could hold out longer.

But Keiichi's arrival broke the balance. Inexperienced, Sasuke was distracted at that critical moment and made a fatal mistake.

Taking advantage of the opening, Haku fired all the Steel Needles in his hands, aiming straight at the weakest of the three, Sakura!

Faced with the terrifying sight of a Pear Blossom Needle Rain, Sakura was so frightened that her hands and feet went numb. She couldn't move at all.

But in the next instant, Sasuke stepped in front of her and took every attack for her.

"Sasuke!" Sakura was so moved that she wanted to offer herself to him right then and there.

But when Sasuke slowly fell in front of her in the next moment, his body covered in Steel Needles like a hedgehog, Sakura completely lost it. She sat frozen on the ground, not knowing what to do.

If only...

If only I knew Medical Ninjutsu...

I'm nothing but a burden!

Sakura was heartbroken.

"Now, how would you like to die?" Haku's icy voice came from every direction. His figure could be seen in every ice mirror.

Chapter 20: The Sharingan Awakens!

Why am I so useless?!

Naruto was on his hands and knees, completely stunned. He had never imagined that a battle between ninjas could turn out like this. Wasn't his opponent just a kid like him?

But what had he done?

He'd done plenty, yet accomplished nothing!

His proudest technique, the Multi Shadow Clone Technique, had turned him into a sitting duck in front of the ice mirrors. Haku had wiped out his clones one by one with ease.

He'd tried to get close and fight, but he couldn't even land a punch. It was like he was hitting a cloud of air. He must have looked ridiculous.

And in the end, Sasuke had to protect him. He couldn't stand it!

Especially when Sakura had been in mortal danger. He hated that he couldn't move, that he couldn't even protect the person he loved most. What right did he have to call it love?

Why am I so weak?!

Strength!

I need the strength to defeat my enemies!

Without realizing it, the whisker-like birthmarks on Naruto's face began to change. His pupils gradually narrowed into slits, and a terrifying chakra that didn't belong to him slowly seeped from his body.

But in the next instant, a hand pressed against his shoulder, interrupting the transformation.

"Naruto-kun, whether we survive this is up to you now," Keiichi said with a smile.

"Y-you... what are you talking about?" Naruto was confused.

"I have an arduous mission for you, and you're the only one who can do it." Keiichi spoke with a grave expression.

"An arduous mission... only I can do..." Naruto's breathing grew heavier.

Even someone as weak as me is worth putting your trust in?

Are you kidding me?!

"In a moment, I'll keep Haku occupied, but I won't be able to hold him for long. While I do, go over there and kill Zabuza. As soon as he's dead, we win."

"You want me... to kill Zabuza?!" Naruto's brain couldn't keep up.

"Can't you even finish off a badly wounded man who can't move?" Keiichi asked sternly.

"Of course I can! Leave it to me!"

"Remember, don't hesitate. All our lives are in your hands!" Keiichi urged him solemnly.

Naruto nodded hard, but just as he was about to set off, he looked troubled. "Wait, we can't get out of this place!"

They had tried escaping the confines of Demonic Mirror Ice Crystals before, but Haku had always knocked them back.

"Heh. Watch this."

As he spoke, Keiichi began rapidly forming Hand Seals—

Snake, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, Tiger...

[Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique]!

A huge fireball burst from Keiichi's mouth and shot straight ahead, as if he knew exactly where Haku was hiding.

"It won't work. Sasuke already tried—" Naruto hadn't finished speaking before he froze.

In the next instant, a figure suddenly fell from the fire and smoke, landing face-first on the ground, his body covered in burns.

It was none other than the elusive Haku!

Heh. With [Spirit: Sure-Hit], it didn't matter where you were hiding. You couldn't escape!

Haku slowly raised his head, still seeming unable to understand why his Ninjutsu had suddenly failed. Why hadn't he been able to teleport away?

And how had his opponent figured out which ice mirror he was hiding in?

Could it really have been luck?

"Naruto, now!"

Naruto wasn't about to miss such a rare opportunity. He took off running, crossed beyond the area covered by the ice mirrors in a flash, and disappeared into the mist.

Seeing this, Keiichi couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief. If Naruto had actually entered Tailed Beast Mode, the situation might have gotten out of hand!

The key was that if things went on like this, the story would follow its original course. How was he supposed to make any changes to it?

Fortunately, he'd had a sudden flash of inspiration and come up with a brilliant plan.

If it really worked, he couldn't wait to see how many Distortion Points he'd get!

Just as Naruto escaped, Haku recovered and floated up like a ghost, vanishing into the ice mirrors once more.

"Haku, aren't you worried about Zabuza?" Keiichi tried to throw him off with words.

"I can still finish you off first."

As soon as he finished speaking, more than a dozen Steel Needles shot in from every direction, surrounding the three of them.

Before, Sasuke had used the Sharingan to keep cutting down the needles, defending against every attack. But now he was gravely wounded and unconscious. How could Keiichi possibly deal with the situation?

That was exactly why Haku was so confident. He believed he could finish the fight in a matter of minutes.

But when the Steel Needles Keiichi had sent flying were cut down one by one, Haku's expression changed at once. He had never expected this seemingly weak guy to suddenly become so formidable.

So he changed tactics. A figure of Haku appeared in every ice mirror, and dozens of illusory images shifted from place to place, dazzling the eye.

Their previous clash had revealed one fatal weakness in Keiichi: he was extremely vulnerable to Genjutsu!

So Haku attacked again. Every illusory image made the same movement, and hundreds of Steel Needles shot out at once, pouring down like rain!

Of course, most of them were just illusions. Only a handful of the Steel Needles were real!

Let's see if you can defend yourself when you can't tell which ones are real!

But in the next instant, Haku was disappointed. Keiichi had identified the few real Steel Needles without hesitation, ignoring the illusions entirely!

He'd broken the Genjutsu!

How was that possible?!

Sakura, who was tending to Sasuke, stared blankly at Keiichi's back. At that moment, she suddenly had the strange feeling that she could see Sasuke in him.

So tall, so dependable, so reassuring!

It wasn't actually an illusion. In fact, after Naruto left, Keiichi had secretly opened the Exchange Shop and spent all his Magic Modification Points at once.

[Uchiha Bloodline] increased by 1%... 2%... 5%!

50 Magic Modification Points deducted.

He entered the [Ninjutsu] menu, opened [Kekkei Genkai], selected [One-Tomoe Sharingan], and redeemed it!

25 Magic Modification Points deducted.

Once he had done all that, the eyes beneath Keiichi's goggles suddenly changed. His Sharingan had awakened!

But hidden behind his goggles, no one noticed!

Now he could finally see the trajectories of the Steel Needles he hadn't been able to track before. He could also perform Sasuke's Cutting Edge with ease!

As for Genjutsu...

Heh!