First things first: I don't own 'Naruto', I don't own the characters, I have no interest whatsoever in profiting from this story. It's here for the entertainment of the readers and that's all.

This AU story asks the question, "What if Sakura had been facing a different direction during the battle at the bridge and seen Kakashi and Zabuza fighting instead of Naruto and Haku?"

Snow Princess
based on 'Naruto' by Masashi Kishimoto

Konohagakure Department of Shinobi Resources
Personnel File #7551311

Family Name: unknown
Given Name: Haku
Date of birth: unknown
Place of birth: unknown
Primary schooling: unknown
Advanced training: Momochi Zabuza, Land of Mists, Kirigakure (deceased)
Current rank: unknown
Current team: Classified
Last assignment: Classified

Land of Waves
Two weeks before completion of the Great Naruto Bridge:

Sakura scanned the area around her, but the mist was so thick that she was completely disoriented. In the distance she thought she could see the silhouettes of two people facing off against one another, but there was no way to tell who they were.

"The mist is beginning to thin out," Tazuna, the bridge builder, said from behind her, "don't you think?"

"I can see two people," Sakura said as she squinted into the fog, "but it looks like they're just standing there glaring at each other."

"It's hard to make out…" Tazuna began to say.

Then suddenly Sakura saw the air around one of the figures begin to glow with a faint blue light. Surprised she sucked in a lung full of air and held her breath. Suddenly there was movement to her left and a brown shape with long dark hair appeared briefly out of the mist as it streaked towards the two figures. Without hesitation Sakura screamed.

--

Kakashi's hand was alive with chakra from the Lightening Blade. Tendrils of pure power laced out in all directions and it was all he could do to contain it while he gave Zabuza one last chance.

"I'll say this just once more," Kakashi was almost begging the man, "give up!"

"Never!" Zabuza hissed.

"Then your future is death."

Kakashi began his charge at the big man being held motionless by a pack of summoned dogs. Then he heard Sakura's scream off to his right. He was only distracted for half a second, but it gave him enough time to see the small lithe body impose itself between him and his target. At the last second he shifted his trust upward, but it still caught the boy a glancing blow full in the face.

Haku's body flew backwards smashing into Zabuza, recoiling off the big man and falling straight back into Kakashi's arms. The boy's face had been torn off and the entire front of his skull caved in by the blast. Kakashi realized in one sickening moment that the boy had died instantly.

The dogs holding Zabusa disappeared as the scroll summoning them lay shredded by senbon needles. Haku's final act had been to set his master free and sacrifice himself in the process. Kakashi lowered the boy gently to the pavement as Zabuza laughed.

"You said my future was death, but you missed again Kakashi…"

One hour after the battle on the bridge:

Kakashi stood with Sakura and the recently revived Sasuke, surveying the aftermath of the battle. The light snow, which had fallen when Zabuza died, was quickly melting in the summer heat leaving a slushy mess through which some of the villagers labored to clean things up. Naruto was off somewhere with the little boy Inari and Kakashi now had the unenviable task of dealing with the dead shinobi bodies.

"Maybe the two of you should head back to the village now," he said. "You probably don't want to see this."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Sasuke asked as he tried not to wince from the pain so evident in his face.

"Or me?" added Sakura.

"No," Kakashi said solemnly, "Just get Sasuke back to the village and make him lay down before he falls down."

Sasuke gave his teacher a dirty look, but obeyed orders and hobbled off down the bridge with Sakura at his side.

Kakashi turned to the gruesome task at hand. Zabuza and Haku lay side by side. Sadly the big man's final wish, to see his companion's face one last time, had not been possible. There was little recognizable as a face left on the boy. Kakashi decided that even though he was about to cut them both open he should at least cover their faces.

"Excuse me," he shouted to one to the village women working nearby. "Would you have something I can cover the dead with?"

The woman walked over and took a handkerchief from the folds of her dress and held it out to Kakashi. It was a nice one, pure white with delicate lace around the edges. "The boy," he said choking up. "Would you mind?"

By now everyone in the village knew he had killed the boy by accident, so with a sympathetic nod the woman bent down and spread the cloth over Haku's ruined face. Then she turned and looked up at Kakashi in surprise. "This one ain't dead."

Two days after the bridge battle:

Naruto and Sasuke finished filling in the hole while Kakashi planted Zabuza's huge zanbatou sword at the head of the grave. Sakura set out an offering plate of food and clasped her hands together in prayer. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye and with lightening fast reflexes swatted the hand reaching to steal a riceball.

"Naruto!" Sakura shouted, "If you eat an offering from a grave you'll be punished by the gods."

The blonde haired boy just chuckled as he rubbed the back of his hand. Sasuke shook his head and walked away while Kakashi looked on in amusement.

After staring Naruto down long enough for him to loose interest in the riceballs, Sakura turned to her teacher and asked, "Sensei, I can't help wondering if they were right about what it means to be a shinobi?"

"A shinobi shouldn't be concerned about the reasons for her existence," Kakashi said solemnly. "We exist as a tool for our homeland to use any way they wish. It's the same for shinobi everywhere."

"Is that really what becoming a shinobi is all about?" Naruto asked. "I don't like the sound of that."

"Do you really believe that, sensei?" Sasuke asked.

"Honestly," Kakashi said with a grin, "no, but the idea is always brewing just below the surface for as long as we are shinobi."

"That's it," Naruto said with determination. "I'm going to create my own destiny and my own path as a shinobi."

"Idiot," Sasuke said under his breath. Then turning to his teacher he asked, "Sensei, shouldn't we wait until the bridge is completed before going home?"

"The bridge builder terminated our contract, so we're no longer obligated to protect him. There also appear to be no remaining obstacles to the bridge's completion. Besides, we have a valuable prize to return to Konoha."

Everyone looked at the blood soaked bundle lying nearby. No one could figure out exactly why Haku was still alive, but even now his chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. Kakashi walked over to the boy's body and bent down. "Sasuke, help me get him up on my back and we'll be on our way."

Land of Fire, Konoha
Two days after arrival:

"I smell something... blood… my blood and… camphor, mugwort, fumitory, ether… all medicines. I must be in a hospital, but where? And why?"

"I hear sounds... someone is talking. It's in a dialect, but which one? The Hidden Leaf Village? Yes, that's it, but… is that where I'm from?

"I can't see... my eyes won't open. My face is covered, maybe if I move my head… PAIN! Searing, burning, throbbing… What is this blackness? Am I dying?"

Two weeks after arrival:

Kakashi strode into the medical wing. It was surprisingly empty, a condition likely to change dramatically when the chuunin exams started soon. He walked to the far end of the hallway and acknowledged the guard at the door with a nod. Inside, the room was dimly lit and heavy curtains had been put over all the windows.

At his own recommendation all open sources of water had been removed from the room. The boy's bloodline ability to create and manipulate ice crystals required a source of water. Not that there was much chance he would recover and mount an attack, but because it was a kekkei genkai it could conceivably manifest itself even while he was unconscious.

He spotted Rin, the medic-nin assigned to Haku, sitting at a small desk on the far side of the room. As he crossed to speak with her he glanced at the room's only bed. Haku lay as motionless as he had for the past two weeks. His head still completely bandaged and blood stains tinged even the fresh ones.

"How's he doing, Rin?" Kakashi asked.

"There's no need to whisper," Rin said turning in her chair, "Other than that one episode, there's been no sign of consciousness. He's responding well to treatment, but nothing I've tried seems able to reach him inside that coma."

Kakashi frowned, "I'm sorry to hear that."

The medic-nin smiled, "You really are worried about this boy, aren't you, Kakashi?"

"I'm the one who nearly killed him when I wasn't even trying, yes. He's a pure spirit, as true and clean as newly fallen snow. He didn't deserve something like this."

"Well," Rin said standing up and walking towards Haku's bed, "there's still hope. If he has all the chakra you say he has, we just need to wake that up. It may take some time…"

"That's just it," Kakashi said while avoiding Rin's gaze, "Haku's time is already up. There's an ANBU team on their way here right now to take him apart."

"What?" Rin cried out, "They can't do that! I haven't agreed to it and the Hokage would never approve the dissection of a shinobi that's still alive."

"Who's to say he's still alive?"

"I'm saying it. His heart's still beating. He's breathing. What more proof do you need?"

"Rin, with the right jutsu I can make a dead body stand up and walk around. Does that make it alive? By all rights this boy should be dead. What if the only thing keeping him breathing is some jutsu we don't understand?"

"That doesn't make it right, Kakashi. You never change." Rin lifted Haku's warm hand from the bed and held it in her own, "He's just a child."

Suddenly Rin felt pressure on her thumb as the injured boy's hand began to squeeze it weakly. There was a muffled groan from the bed and she bent over quickly to put her ear near Haku's bandaged mouth.

"Water," he whispered hoarsely, "water, please."

She turned to Kakashi and smiled, "So tell me smart guy, have you got a jutsu to make a dead body ask for a glass of water?"

Before the startled jonin could respond, the door burst open and four masked men trooped into the room. Kakashi looked from the ANBU team to the boy on the bed who was suddenly very much alive. "This is going to get ugly," he muttered.

Three days after awakening:

"Hello Sakura-chan," said the guard at the door, "back for another visit?"

"Yeah," said the pink haired kunoichi, "not that he'll even know I'm here."

"You're in for a bit of a surprise. He's awake!"

"Really?" Sakura said in surprise, "Is he okay? I mean… well, would he be able to see me?"

The guard looked at the girl thoughtfully. "There are a few things you should probably know before you go in there. Maybe you better talk to the medic-nin first. I'll go get her for you."

The guard disappeared into the room and a minute later held the door open for Rin. The tall woman with honey colored hair smiled at Sakura. "You're on Hatake Kakashi's genin team, right? You were there when Haku was injured, weren't you?"

"Yes ma'am, I'm Haruno Sakura. I was on the bridge and I sort of saw it happen."

"I'm a little surprised to hear you've been coming to visit Haku. Didn't he try to kill members of your team?"

"Well, not really. He made it look like Sasuke was dead, but…"

Rin crossed her arms and regarded Sakura with uncertainty, "Why are you really here, Sakura?"

"I thought… I just wanted to ask him why. Why he didn't kill Sasuke and Naruto when he had the chance?"

Rin sighed, "Then I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed. Haku suffered massive brain damage and even though he's been able to regenerate all of the lost tissue, there's no way for him to regain his lost memories. He doesn't remember fighting your friends. He doesn't even remember who he is."

Sakura hung her head for a moment and said, "I'd still like to see him."

"Good," Rin said smiling, "I think he'd appreciate some company. Not knowing where he is or who he is has been very stressful. There are a couple of things you need to know before I let you go in however. Even though we were able to repair all of the damage to his skull and face he's still in a great deal of pain. Try not to say anything that will upset him or cause him to make faces, even smiling hurts."

Sakura nodded, "I'll be careful."

"The second thing is a little hard to explain, how much do you know about chakra gender?"

Sakura beamed, chakra was her ace subject after all! "Everyone's chakra is composed of two forces, yin and yang, which are roughly in balance with one another. A chakra is said to have a female gender if it has more yin than yang. Boys have just the opposite, more yang than yin. Girls with a lot more yin are better suited for certain jobs, like medic-nins."

"Very good, Sakura," Rin said with a big smile. "You really do pay attention in class. When the… um, 'specialists' came and looked at Haku a few days ago they discovered that his chakra is predominantly yin. That's not a bad thing. There are plenty of shinobi with a chakra gender opposite that of their physical gender.

"However in Haku's case, because of the profound memory loss, the female chakra is the only thing he has to define himself by. He doesn't realize he's not a girl yet and we've been playing along to lessen the shock. I'll have to ask you to treat him as if he were actually a girl. Okay?"

"Sure, I can do that."

Sakura followed the pretty medic-nin into the room and prepared herself for what she was about to find there. She had seen what was left of Haku's face on the bridge that day and the long trip home could not have made rebuilding it any easier, but nothing could prepare her for what she actually saw.

Haku was sitting up in bed, his long black hair pulled back into a ponytail, but his face... his face looked perfectly normal. Sakura had never actually seen the boy without an ANBU mask on, but he looked just as Naruto had described him.

He glanced up and spotted Sakura. When their eyes made contact, Sakura felt a chill run down her spine. She had never seen eyes that looked so empty before, as if they had once seen everything and now had nothing left to show for it.

"Hello," Haku said timidly, "are you another medic?"

Sakura smiled, Haku sounded more like a shy classmate than a dangerous enemy. Naruto had been right, he looked so much like a girl it was hard to imagine him as anything else. "Hello, my name's Sakura. I'm not a medic."

Haku glanced away and winced as if trying to catch a memory that was eluding him. "I'm sorry," he said at last. "Should I know you? I really can't remember much. They tell me it's because I was hit in head."

"No," Sakura said, inching closer to the bed. "We've never really met. You... uh... did meet the other members of my team just before you were injured. You look really good, better than I was expecting."

Haku blushed and put a hand to his face bashfully. "You're being nice, I must look a mess. Doctor Rin showed me a healing jutsu that fixed my face and made it easier to think about things, but for some reason they won't let me wash my face or my hair. They won't even let me look in a mirror, do I really look all right?"

"Sure," Sakura said quickly, "you look really good. I can see why Naruto thought you were a..."

Haku looked up expectantly, but Sakura never finished the sentence. "You're very pretty, Sakura. I like your hair. That's a shinobi badge you're wearing for a hair band, isn't it?"

Sakura self conscientiously touched the blue scarf holding her long pink hair away from her face. "Yeah, I just graduated this year."

"I think I was a shinobi," Haku said innocently. "I think I wasn't a very nice one though. At least that's the way they're treating me, like I'm a dangerous animal. Did I hurt you or your friends?"

"No," Sakura said glancing nervously at the curtain behind which Rin surely sat listening to their every word. "In fact you saved a member of my team and... one of your own."

"That must have been papa," Haku said quietly.

"Papa?" Sakura asked looking confused.

"Well, I can't really remember him or his name. I just know there was someone I cared for. Someone who feels kind of like a father to me. You say I saved him, does that mean he's alive? Does he know I'm here?"

"Well, no... ur... I mean… I don't really know what happened..." Sakura knew she'd messed up when she saw Haku's face contort and tears well up in his eyes. She heard a chair scrape on the floor behind the curtain just as Haku began screaming. Rin threw back the curtain and rushed to the bed. Haku was holding his face in both hands and wailing in agony.

Rin glared at Sakura, "I warned you about this. I think you better go."

"I'm sorry," Sakura was about to cry herself. It was frightening, one moment Haku was fine and the next he was shrieking in pain. She'd never heard anyone cry out in pain that way. It made her wonder what it must be like to have your face ripped off and then put back on. She didn't think it would at all that much fun. "I didn't know. I thought she knew. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Rin said in a calmer voice. She'd already pried Haku's hands away from his face and was holding her own up to it. A blue glow began to emanate from them and the boy's sobs died away. "You couldn't have known this would happen. Look, you can come back tomorrow if you like, but please go now."

"Okay. I'm really sorry." Sakura said as she turned to go.

"Sakura," Haku called out in a broken voice. A hint of the pain he was feeling could still be heard, but he was obviously trying very hard to control it. "Please come visit me again. I really enjoyed talking to you. I'd like to be your friend."

Sakura looked back and simply nodded before running from the room. When she was out in the hallway she finally let her tears come and whispered to herself, "Heaven help me, so would I."

To be continued…