"No!" I sat up in bed, woken by my mother's screams. I wandered downstairs, and watched as my mother was beaten to death by her newest boyfriend. I stood there, unable to do a thing. He turned on me, fist raised. "You little brat! It's time you got what you deserve!"
I awoke, sweating. Just another nightmare. My sweat cooled quickly in the chilly air, and I shivered. I pulled my knees up to my chest, huddling beneath the ratty old blanket I'd found in the garbage. My stomach rumbled, and my nose ran. The footstep was my only warning. Pain blossomed in my side as the stranger kicked me viciously, clearly drunk. I lay down and took it, the pain proof that I existed. I heard a scuffle, and the kicking stopped. My attacker fell to the ground, bleeding. Curious, I sat up and searched for the wound. He was bleeding everywhere, and I had trouble finding the wound. In my search, I found a strange blade embedded in the man's neck. I looked up, but no one was around. Shrugging, I took the man's cloak and wallet, and moved away from the body. I sat on the bridge, huddling beneath the cloak. I lay down and closed my eyes, dreaming of snow. Pure white, cold, fresh snow.
With the money I'd obtained the night before, I bought a bowl of ramen. It was the first hot meal I'd had in weeks, and it was delicious. I spent the last of the money on a warm blanket I could sleep beneath and a small backpack. I packed the blanket and cloak into the backpack, and considered where I would get my next meal. Desperate, I targeted a small bakery. While the shop assistant was dealing with a customer, I snuck in back and grabbed a couple of loaves of bread. I ducked out the back door just as the shop assistant walked in, and hid the bread in my bag. The shop assistant chased me and grabbed my arm, turning me around. "Where do you think you're going, brat? Give back the bread you stole!" He grabbed my bag and took the bread and the blanket, grinning. Laughing, he walked to the side of the bridge and chucked the bag over it. Turning back, he knocked me to the ground and began to kick me. I curled up in a little ball, and endured the pain. Why? Why are people so cruel? He walked away, still laughing. I sat up and stared at the sky, wondering what I'd done to deserve this. Footsteps got my attention, and I stared at the man crouching in front of me. "You have the same eyes as me," I mumbled. "You're unwanted, aren't you? You little brat," he murmured. He had bandages covering the lower half of his face and wore arm warmers. He had no shirt, just long pants, and carried a large sword. He wore a forehead protector, marking him as a shinobi. He placed a bowl of ramen on the ground, and stood and left. I watched him go, awed. Looking around, I darted forwards and grabbed the bowl of ramen. The shinobi didn't return and take it from me, so I ate it as quickly as I could. Curious, I stood and searched the village for the mysterious shinobi, but I couldn't find him. I returned to the bridge and sat, weary. I heard footsteps again, and looked up into the face of the mysterious shinobi. "What's your name?" he asked. "Haku, sir," I replied quietly. A strange look passed across his face. "Aren't you scared?" I shook my head. "No, sir. I'm not afraid of pain or death, so I have nothing to fear." He nodded. "What's your name?" I asked, curious. He chuckled. "My name is Zabuza." He stood and began to walk away. I got to my feet and followed him. He didn't yell at me, didn't tell me to get lost, so I stayed with him. He left the village and still I followed. I had no home, nowhere else to go, so I stayed with him. He didn't rush, didn't try to lose me, and I felt myself beginning to respect him. He made camp that night in a small clearing in a forest. I watched from the shadows as he made dinner, my stomach rumbling. Zabuza placed a bowl of stew at the edge of the clearing, and went to sleep. I crept forwards and ate the stew, grateful.
Full, I grew sleepy. I found a soft patch of leaves on the forest floor within sight of the clearing, and curled up.
I woke suddenly, and found myself alone in the forest. A blanket was wrapped around me, and I pulled it close, thinking I was dreaming. It was no dream; I was really alone in the forest. I got to my feet and ran to the clearing, to find it deserted. Determined, I listened to the sounds of the forest, and searched for signs of humans passing through. Sudden birdcall to the east got my attention, and I headed in that direction. A broken branch here and damaged moss on that tree kept me moving. I was sure Zabuza had gone this way, and I wasn't about to let him leave me behind. A blurred movement in my peripherals caught my attention, and I ducked. A strange blade, identical to the one that I'd found in the drunk's neck, lodged itself in a tree trunk. Zabuza appeared, silent. I watched him warily as he retrieved his knife and approached me. "You did well, finding me." My mouth twitched, but I didn't smile, no matter how good the praise made me feel. He turned away and continued his journey, his pace faster than yesterday. I followed, struggling to keep up, but I refused to give in. We travelled a great distance that day, and reached the edge of the forest at nightfall. Zabuza made camp on the edge of the forest, and I found a comfortable place to sleep in the shadows at the edge of the firelight. I slept well, but woke early, worried he would leave me again. I watched the sky, waiting for Zabuza to get up. He stirred as the sun began to appear over the horizon. He packed his gear and walked off. I chased after him, and we left the forest. Around midday a village came into view. Zabuza headed for the village, and I followed, nervous. The closer we got to the village entrance, the closer I got to Zabuza. He glanced back at me, eyebrow raised. I stared back, my blank face hiding my fear. The gatekeepers didn't even glance at Zabuza as he walked through, but stopped me as soon as they saw me. "What are you doing here?" one asked, trying to look kind. I stood my ground, but didn't answer the question. What was I supposed to say? I'd followed a stranger here because he'd fed me? I was saved from answering when Zabuza returned. "He's with me," he said, his voice almost menacing. The gatekeepers tried to hide their fear as they let me pass. I felt triumph, which surprised me. I stared a Zabuza, my respect for him growing stronger with each passing moment. Zabuza looked down at me, thinking. "Now, what do I do with you?" I remained silent, hoping he wasn't going to leave me here. He turned away and walked deeper into the village. I followed, as I had nowhere else to go. We reached a large building built into the base of a cliff. He entered, and I followed, curious. We went deeper into the building, and climbed many flights of stairs. Finally we reached a set of double doors, and Zabuza walked through. I slipped in before the doors shut, and hid behind Zabuza. A young man with messy light-grey hair and pink eyes sat behind the desk in the room. A strange scar ran from just below his left eye all the way down his cheek. The man looked up from his desk and smiled. "Zabuza, you've returned. Was your mission successful?" Zabuza nodded. "The traitor has been dealt with." The strange man spotted me, and glanced at Zabuza. "Who's this? I didn't think you were the one to pick up stray cats, Zabuza." He got up and walked around Zabuza, and faced me. "What's your name?" I stood my ground and refused to show fear. "Haku, sir." He grinned at me, and turned to Zabuza. "Have you decided to take on a student, Zabuza?" he asked, laughing. I grew angry, not liking the way he laughed at Zabuza. Zabuza glanced at me, and turned to the stranger. "I have, Yagura." Yagura looked shocked. "Are you serious? You, who killed all of your classmates, are taking on a student?" I was shocked by the news that Zabuza had killed his classmates, but I didn't let it show. To show fear now would mean death, I was sure of it. "Yes," Zabuza replied.
"I am taking on a student." Yagura shook his head, clearly surprised. Zabuza turned and walk out of the room, and I followed. I didn't say anything, I didn't ask any questions, I just followed Zabuza to his home.
We walked through the village, passing many shinobi. They watched us pass, and stared when they saw me with Zabuza. I kept my head down and stayed quiet, trying my hardest to blend. When we got to Zabuza's apartment, I stopped. "Um, Zabuza, are you really taking me on as your student?" He turned to me, and raised his eyebrow. 'Yes, I am. Are you coming in?" I nodded, and followed Zabuza into his apartment. He walked into the kitchen, and I followed, unsure of where to go. I sat at the table, perfectly still. He glanced at me, and began to make lunch. He placed a plate of food in front of me, and raised his eyebrow again. I began to eat, realising that his raised eyebrow was his way of expressing himself. He sat opposite me and began to eat his own lunch. We ate in silence, the silence soon becoming awkward for me. Once we had finished lunch, Zabuza stood and walked towards the front door. "Come," he called, without turning around. I leapt to my feet and followed Zabuza. He led me to an open field of grass on the edge of the village. There were others on the field, and they stared as we approached. I hid behind Zabuza, nervous. "Hey Zabuza, what's with the stray following you around? Did you feed it? You know they never leave when you do that." I blushed, and they laughed. Zabuza said nothing. He led me to an open space in the field, away from the others training there. "Haku, you need to learn to stand up for yourself." I looked at my feet, and he sighed. "Hit me." I stared at him, and he raised his eyebrow. I punched, and found myself lying on my back in the grass. "Hit me," Zabuza repeated. I tried again, and again I ended up on my back. I stood and thought a moment, then tried a different approach. I pretended to aim for his stomach, but used my other hand to punch his side. He blocked it, looking surprised. "Hit me." I tried again and again, but I couldn't lay a finger on him. I could hear the others laughing, and anger boiled within me. Furious, I flew at Zabuza, punching again and again. Not one hit, but Zabuza looked pleased. "I'll make a shinobi out of you yet." We returned to his apartment, and had dinner. Zabuza gave me the spare room to sleep in. I dreamt of snow again that night. Cold, white snow.
Each day for the next few weeks Zabuza would take me out to the training field, where I would try to hit him. Each day I grew a little stronger and a little faster. After two months of this, I finally landed a hit. I stopped, surprised, and Zabuza promptly knocked me to the ground. He raised his eyebrow, and almost smiled. "It's time to choose a weapon." I followed him to the weapons room, staring at all the different weapons on the walls. He led me through the room, and I tried various weapons, but none seemed to suit me. As we were leaving the room, I spotted what looked like needles sitting on a table. I picked one up, and looked it over. Experimentally, I threw it. Zabuza turned around, and saw me playing with the needles. "Those are called senbon. Do you like them?" I nodded. Zabuza walked to the back of the room, and returned with a small pouch. "Here. These are now yours. Look after them, and they will look after you." I opened the pouch, and saw it contained senbon. I smiled, and held the pouch close. I will treasure these for as long as I live. We left the weapons room and returned to the training field. Zabuza had me practice with the senbon. I threw them at a tree, learning how to throw them. Often I would miss, or the senbon wouldn't fly correctly. Eventually we returned to Zabuza's apartment. The next day was spent practicing with the senbon, as were most of the days for the next three months. Zabuza began to set up targets for me to hit. Once I'd hit a target dead centre, he would change something about the target, and I would have to hit it again.
One day, while I was looking after my senbon after a practice session, he sat beside me and asked about where I'd come from. "Who were your parents?" I shook my head. "I don't know who my father was. Mother was very scared. Whenever I played outside in the snow, she would get upset. I don't know what it was, but it felt like I did something wrong." Zabuza looked thoughtful.
"Do you know any ninjutsu?" I shook my head. "I've never learned. I've lived on the streets most of my life. Mother was… killed by her last boyfriend. He tried to kill me, but somehow I escaped." I paused. How did I escape him? "Do you remember anything about that day?" Zabuza asked. I began to shake my head, but stopped. "I remember ice. Something to do with ice stopped Mother's killer before he got to me. I think it killed him." I struggled to remember more, but I had been too young at the time. I couldn't remember anything else. "Come." Zabuza led me to a river running past the village. "I know this isn't ice, but I want you to try something. See if you can freeze it." I focused on the water, but nothing happened. Zabuza shook his head. "Maybe it's too early. I'll teach you some chakra exercises first." I glanced up at him. "Chakra?" Zabuza raised his eyebrow. "It's the energy that flows through people. Shinobi use it to perform ninjutsu, as well as many other things." I nodded. "So if I could control my chakra, I could freeze the water?" Zabuza looked thoughtful. "It's possible. We're going back. I'll show you some exercises tomorrow." We headed back to his apartment. Suddenly I found myself separated from Zabuza. I looked around, but I didn't recognise any of the buildings. Laughter caught my attention, and I turned. A kid around my age was leaning against a nearby wall. I saw two more near him, and another three were behind me. "What do you want?" I asked, acting tough. The kid who had laughed stepped forward, grinning menacingly. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Zabuza's little stray." I readied myself for a fight, but I knew that I had no chance. "Why are you here, brat. No one wants you." "You're just a stray." "Go home brat." I felt fury rise within me, but I didn't let it show. I didn't want to provoke a fight, though I knew that it was inevitable. "What are you doing?" a voice growled menacingly. Relief flooded through me. "Run!" The leader of the group yelled, and they vanished. "Haku, what are you doing here?" I looked down at my feet. "I got lost," I mumbled. He shook his head, and began to walk away. I followed, and soon I recognised where I was. "Zabuza, make me stronger. I want to stand up for myself." He laughed. "Alright, I'll help you. You will become my weapon."
Soon a year had passed since I'd become Zabuza's student. I was stronger, more confident. I trained hard each day just to please him, to become strong like he was. I could hit a target with my senbon with pinpoint accuracy. My taijutsu was strong, and my chakra control near perfect. But my ninjutsu weren't so good. I struggled with the simpler water style jutsu, and couldn't even begin to attempt the higher level jutsu. I grew more and more frustrated by my inability to perform ninjutsu well. Zabuza watched, and I knew he was disappointed. I worked hard to impress him, but I fell through whenever ninjutsu were involved. One day he sat me down. "Haku, I want you to try the river exercise again. Try to freeze the river." I made my way to the river, and focused. Nothing happened, and I nearly screamed with frustration. Calming myself, I closed my eyes and tried again. When I opened my eyes, I saw ice crystals clinging to the river bank. Excited, I tried again. More ice crystals formed, and soon the surface of the river was coated in ice. I ran back to Zabuza, and told him of my success. He told me to wait where I was, and disappeared. I sat patiently, wondering what he was doing. I heard snickering, and realised that I was being watched by the same kids who had attacked me before. "Can't you even perform a basic ninjutsu?" one said, snickering. Another giggled.
"No way, he's too stupid to know how." I stood, furious. "Come closer and say that again." They remained where they were, taunting me and laughing. "Zabuza mustn't be as great as they say, if he can't teach you a simple ninjutsu." I reached into the pouch on my belt and threw a senbon at the speaker. She shrieked with pain and surprise. Scowling, she pulled the senbon from her arm and advanced on me. I prepared for a fight, but was stopped when Zabuza returned.
The other kids ran off as soon as he appeared. I retrieved my senbon from the grass and wiped it clean with the bottom of my shirt. "Did you hit your target?" I shook my head. "I missed by a centimetre." Zabuza raised his eyebrow, and placed the scroll he was carrying on the ground. Curious, I knelt beside the scroll, but didn't open it. "This scroll contains information about jutsu related to those with kekkei genkai." I asked, "What is kekkei genkai?" Zabuza replied, "Kekkei genkai are bloodline limits, traits and abilities passed down through clan's. They are inherited, not learnt." I was confused. "If they can't be learnt, why did you bring the scroll here?" The realisation hit me. "You think I have a bloodline limit." Zabuza nodded. "I suspect that you're the last survivor of the Yuki clan, and that your mother was killed because she was a carrier of a kekkei genkai. You killed your mother's killer using your kekkei genkai, Ice Release." I shook my head in confusion. "What is Ice Release?" I asked. "It's the ability to control ice. I want you to try to perform this jutsu," he said, opening the scroll. He pointed out a particular jutsu. Underneath the jutsu were the required hand seals and details of the jutsu itself. I practiced the hand seals a while, learning them and sealing them in my memory. Once I had the seals memorised, I tried the jutsu. "Ice style, Crystal Ice Mirrors jutsu." Mirrors of ice formed around us, trapping us within them. I touched a mirror, and found that I could walk into them. I walked into a mirror, and my reflection appeared in all the other mirrors. Zabuza couldn't tell which one was the real me. I moved from one mirror to another, and realised that if I moved fast enough, I could almost attack from all directions at once. I released the jutsu and sat, the drain on my strength surprising me. Zabuza looked pleased, and I felt a great joy. Maybe I could become his ultimate weapon after all. We went home early that day. I was exhausted from practicing my jutsu and learning to increase my speed. The next day I tried a water jutsu again. I was surprised when I succeeded. I began to learn more jutsu, and soon, I was able to perform many water jutsu, as well as my crystal ice mirrors jutsu.
"I have a mission. You are to come with me." I nodded, hiding the excitement I felt. My first mission! I wonder what it's going to be. Zabuza and I left the village, and headed for a nearby forest. We were cleaning out a nest of bandits that had been terrorising a nearby village for many months now. I watched as Zabuza took down the bandits, in awe of my sensei's skill. A bandit snuck away, and I gave chase. I cornered him at the base of a cliff. With no choice, he leapt at me, trying to defeat me and escape. I fought with him, and slit his throat with my kunai. The bandit fell to the ground at my feet, his life's blood staining the earth. I returned to Zabuza, who had just finished off the rest of the bandits. He raised his eyebrow, and I nodded. He turned away, and we headed home together. Yagura was impressed with our work. "You have done well in this mission. Good work." Zabuza nodded slightly, and I remained still. "I have another mission for you. Kisame has gone rogue. I want you to hunt him down and kill him. Take another with you." We left the Mizukage's office. I watched Zabuza closely as we headed home to rest a night before we went on the hunt. He had been as close to friends as he got with Kisame, and I thought this may be difficult for him. I didn't sleep well that night, so distracted was I by Zabuza's tossing and turning.
The next morning dawned bright and cold. We headed out, on the hunt for Kisame. We were joined by another Jounin from the village. We travelled for many days before we found him. We confronted him, but I knew that Zabuza did not want this. As his weapon, I made the decision to let Kisame go. The Jounin with us turned on me, angry. "You just betrayed your village! Do you have any sense of loyalty?" I nodded. "I am loyal to my sensei and him alone. I am his weapon, and he will wield me how he sees fit. It is my duty to do as he wishes." The Jounin attacked, and I leapt away. I threw senbon, striking points that paralysed him. Zabuza glanced at me, and almost smiled. He approached the Jounin, and pondered his next move. "Do I let you live, and allow you to tell the Mizukage of our betrayal, or do I kill you now?" The Jounin looked terrified, and a small part of me pitied him. "Zabuza, let him live. Will it not be more interesting if the Mizukage knew we had gone rogue?" Zabuza thought it over, and nodded. "Lucky you, you get to live another day." I approached the Jounin and removed my senbon. The Jounin was able to move again. He fled in the direction of the village. I turned to Zabuza. "Where to now?" He turned to the north and we began to walk, away from Zabuza's village. We reached a port, where Zabuza got us permission to board a boat. "Where are we going, Zabuza?" He turned to me once we were on board the ship. 'We're going on a little trip to the Land of Lightning. It's safer for us to leave the Land of Water, and we need to find jobs." I nodded. It made sense. The trip lasted a week. In that time, Zabuza and I made a few enemies on the ship. We managed to avoid conflict while on the ship only because Zabuza had no interest in fighting. Once we docked, however, the people we'd turned into our enemies made their move. We made our way to a hotel, and were ambushed in an alley. Zabuza laughed. "Haku, it's your turn." I nodded, and made my move. I took down three of our attackers with senbon, each hit fatal. Two remained, and they were furious. Zabuza stepped forward to face one of the attackers. I moved up to take on the other. "Ice style, Crystal Ice Mirrors." The attacker was surrounded by my mirrors, and I walked into one. "You will regret attacking us. I am Zabuza's weapon, and he will wield me how he sees fit." I attacked, throwing senbon and leaping from mirror to mirror. The attacker fell to the ground, covered in cuts. "Haku, you're too soft. Finish him." I nodded, and released my jutsu. I threw a senbon, a fatal hit. Turning to Zabuza, I asked, "Where to now? We can't stay here." Zabuza nodded. "Come." We left the village, and made our way to an open plain. We spent the night on the plain, able to see anyone trying to sneak up on us. We left before dawn, and spent many days travelling through the countryside. Whenever we came across a village, we would look for jobs we could do to earn money and feed ourselves. A caravan travelling to the Hidden Cloud village hired us as bodyguards. We accompanied them to the village, and slaughtered any bandits who tried to attack the caravan. We arrived at the Hidden Cloud village just as the sun began to set. Unforeseen circumstances forced us to accompany the caravan inside the village, where we spent the night in a hotel. We awoke before dawn the next day and tried to leave quietly, but were stopped by shinobi of the Hidden Cloud village. They had recognised us from notices sent to all the major ninja villages. We had no choice but to fight our way out. Zabuza took down three of the shinobi, and I killed another two before they retreated. We left the village swiftly, unwilling to become caught up in a major battle. With the money we'd earned from our mission as bodyguards, we bought food from the next village we came across, and saved the rest for dire times.
"Zabuza, where do we go now?" I asked. He glanced at me. "We have a couple of options. We can pass through the Land of Frost and the Land of Hot Springs, and enter the Land of Fire. Eventually we would pass through the Land of Rivers and reach the Land of Wind. Or we could sail east to the Land of Earth." I thought it over a moment. "Can we go to the Land of Frost? I want to see snow." Zabuza nodded, and we headed southwest, to the Land of Frost. When we got there, I was disappointed. It wasn't snowing, and there wasn't any snow on the ground. There was plenty of ice around though, which I experimented with. We left the Land of Frost and travelled through the Land of Hot Springs, doing the odd job here and there. Another caravan hired us as additional bodyguards, and we accompanied it to the Land of Fire. The caravan was headed to the Hidden Leaf village, and we parted ways before it reached its destination. Travelling east, we hit port city, where we found another job. "We need you to stop the bridge from being built," our benefactor told us. We headed out to the Land of Waves and learnt that the bridge builder in charge of the project would be returning from a journey to the mainland in a week. We set our ambush, and waited for the bridge builder to come to us. He was accompanied by shinobi from the Hidden Leaf village. I watched as Zabuza confronted them, and captured the squad leader with his Water Prison jutsu. The rest of the team were just kids, but they were determined to rescue their leader. They freed him, and Zabuza was in trouble. I put on my mask, and acted the part of a hunter-nin to save Zabuza. I used my senbon to put Zabuza in a death-like state, and retrieved his 'body'. I carried him away and revived him. It was a week before he was strong enough to face Kakashi again. We travelled to the Land of Waves in order to complete our mission.