"I... my loyalty is to..."
Haku's voice was hoarse and raspy, as if every word was squeezed from a rusted throat.
His body trembled slightly, not from cold, but because the edifice of 'belief' within him was experiencing a devastating earthquake.
"It's to Zabuza-sama..."
He answered instinctively.
"And also... his dream..."
Even he felt a lack of conviction in this addition.
"This is a logical paradox,"
Naruto's voice coldly interrupted his struggle.
"When the trajectories of 'person' and 'dream' clash, you cannot be loyal to both simultaneously."
"You must make a choice."
"For example,"
Naruto gave Haku no chance to breathe.
"Suppose Zabuza's dream is to build a ship that can cross the sea. But he himself insists on using sand as the material for shipbuilding. As his only craftsman, should you obey his command and build a ship destined to sink with sand, or should you tell him that we need wood?"
This analogy was simple, crude, yet it hit the nail on the head.
Haku couldn't answer.
Because the answer was self-evident.
"Obeying his command and being swallowed by the sea with him is foolish loyalty."
"Finding real wood, building a sturdy ship, and carrying him across the sea—that is true loyalty."
Naruto withdrew his hand from the ice mirror.
The oppressive feeling from the soul level vanished instantly, and Haku gasped, feeling as if he had just been pulled from deep water.
"Your current situation is like building a ship with sand."
Naruto's words continued.
"Gato is that pile of useless sand. And you, possessing the ability to find wood, have chosen to ignore it."
"I..."
Haku opened his mouth, but found he couldn't say anything.
Naruto's chain of logic was impeccable.
He defined Haku's actions as "betrayal of a dream," thereby circumventing the emotional minefield of "betrayal of Zabuza himself."
This was a subtle ideological substitution.
"What you want is to help Zabuza achieve his dream, right?"
Naruto threw out a leading question.
"...Yes."
Haku nodded subconsciously.
This goal, he had never wavered from.
"Then, what if I can offer a solution that is more efficient, more direct, and has a higher success rate than 'being Gato's thug'?"
Naruto finally revealed his true intentions.
Haku suddenly looked up, and for the first time, emotions other than shock appeared in his eyes beneath the mask.
It was confusion, and a hint of... a longing he hadn't even noticed himself.
"You...?"
"I, Uzumaki Naruto, am just a Konoha Genin."
Naruto introduced himself.
"But I am good at planning, assessing risks, and... optimizing resource allocation."
"You and Zabuza, in my opinion, are two 'high-quality resources' that are severely underestimated and used incorrectly."
"I can provide you with the most efficient path to victory."
Naruto's words were filled with undeniable confidence.
This confidence did not stem from arrogance, but from an absolute rationality based on a vast knowledge base and countless successful practices.
It inherently possessed a convincing power.
"Why should I believe you?"
Haku's voice still trembled, but his logic was starting to come back online.
He began to question, to think, and that was the first step Naruto wanted to see.
"Because I can stand here and discuss these issues with you, while you are helpless."
Naruto pointed to the surrounding ice mirrors.
"Because I can see through every trajectory of your attacks, while your understanding of me is limited to 'a blonde Konoha Genin'."
"More importantly, because we share a common enemy."
Naruto changed the subject.
"Gato."
Haku fell silent.
"You don't like him."
Naruto stated.
"His greed, his cruelty, his baseness, are all incompatible with the 'Ninja Way' you believe in. Every time you cooperate with him, it's an ordeal for you."
"You are just forcing yourself to accept it."
"Because you think it's 'necessary'."
"Now, I tell you, it is not necessary."
Naruto looked at Haku.
"We can have better choices."
At this moment, the battle outside the ice mirror also entered a heated stage.
"Damn it! What in the world are your brats doing?!"
Zabuza's kubikiribōchō swung with fierce power, yet it could never pose a fatal threat to Kakashi.
Kakashi was like a slippery piece of taffy, constantly maneuvering with his Sharingan's copying ability and superb Body Replacement Technique, wearing down Zabuza's stamina and patience.
"How should I know?"
Kakashi replied lazily, but his heart was already in turmoil.
Naruto's contingency plan gave him only one instruction: "Stall Zabuza, do not actively attack, exhaust his Chakra and patience as much as possible until I give the signal."
At the time, Kakashi didn't understand, but now he did.
Naruto's main battlefield was not here at all.
But within that ice crystal cage.
It was a war he could not intervene in, nor could he comprehend.
"Haku's speed has slowed! His Chakra is unstable!"
Zabuza roared, he could clearly feel that the Chakra maintaining the Demonic Mirror Ice Crystals was fluctuating violently.
This indicated that Haku's mind was in disarray.
"It seems your 'tool' has a slight malfunction, Zabuza."
Kakashi keenly grasped the other party's psychological fluctuation and taunted him.
"Shut up!"
Zabuza's attacks became more frantic and disorganized.
He was getting anxious.
Haku was his only companion, the softest spot in his heart.
He could not tolerate any harm coming to Haku.
Inside the ice mirror.
Haku naturally heard Zabuza's roar.
His heart grew more painful and conflicted.
"Zabuza-sama... is worried about me..."
"Yes, he is worried about you."
Naruto caught the change in his emotions.
"Because he sees you as a 'child' who needs protection and cannot think independently, not as a 'comrade' who can fight alongside him and formulate strategies together."
"This unequal partnership is inherently fragile."
"Look at him, because of your unstable state, his attacks have lost their rhythm. He is being worn down by Kakashi-sensei. This is what I mean by 'incorrect resource allocation'."
"Your existence should be his aid, but now, because of your wavering heart, it has become his weakness."
Naruto's analysis was like sharp knives, plunging into Haku's heart.
He made Haku clearly realize that his current "loyalty" not only failed to help Zabuza but was actually dragging him down.
"Then... then you say..."
Haku's defenses were completely breached at this moment.
He looked up at the blonde teenager, who was even shorter than himself, and for the first time asked in a tone almost pleading.
"Give me a... better plan."
A nearly imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of Naruto's mouth.
The fish had taken the bait.
"The plan is simple."
He held up one finger.
"First step, release this jutsu, stop the internal conflict."
He then held up a second finger.
"Second step, together with me, clear out the 'trash' that is about to arrive."
"Trash?"
Haku was puzzled.
"Your employer, Gato."
Naruto's voice was calm and unwavering.
"According to my calculations, about fifteen minutes after our battle began, Gato will, out of impatience or distrust of you, arrive on this bridge with his private armed forces."
"His goal is likely to reap the benefits, eliminating everyone, including you, after you and we are both severely wounded."
"Wh... what?!"
Haku was shocked.
"That's impossible! We have a contract!"
"For a capitalist with no credibility, the value of a contract depends on whether tearing it up or honoring it yields more profit."
Naruto said indifferently.
"And now, it's clearly in his best interest to tear it up."
"You..."
Haku still wanted to argue.
Just then, a noisy sound of ordinary footsteps, accompanied by thick fog, faintly drifted from the other end of the bridge.
Among them, there was also an exceptionally arrogant, sharp laugh.
"Hahahaha! It seems those two useless Ninja aren't much good after all! They still haven't finished the job after all this time!"
It was Gato's voice!
Haku stiffened.
Naruto's prediction had come true.
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