Authors Notes:

This story is an OC (Sort of SI but not really). I really like OC SI stories, I find them fun and interesting. Though, I've found that a lot of the narrative is about preparing for the future because of past memories and conflicts about lying to people because of past memories. It can be very stale and in some cases can involve a convoluted plan to alter canon that gets too unbelievable and weird for me.

So my solution and alternative to that is this story. An OC with no past memories.

Minor variations from canon. For example, Juzo dies a lot earlier in this universe in order for Zabuza to start the story with Kubikiribocho.

I've already written the entire first arc of the story. I'll release it over the next few days. Subsequent arcs have already been planned out and I'm writing them now. Arc 1 will include quite a few time skips, as nothing that interesting happens and it's mostly just an introduction before we reach canon.

Thanks and please enjoy.

Chapter 1

"Zabuza Sensei, where are we going?"

"A town on the outskirts of the Land of Water, the war hasn't spread there yet"

"And why are we going there?"

"Training"

"Why are we training?"

Zabuza Sensei turns his head slightly to look in my direction and glares down at me with his usual 'you're annoying, shut up' look.

…and now we get to walk in silence. I know better than to keep talking to Zabuza Sensei after he's given me that look. It took a while to figure out, but my training gets a lot tougher when I've annoyed him. He seems to use it as an excuse to beat me up…

He's a bit prickly, but he must care about me a little. Why else would he wonder around with an orphan like me? Not to mention, most of the time we spend together he's training me to be a ninja!

My earliest memory is being carried around by him. I'm not sure when it was, but it must have been when I was really little. There's no way he'd agree to carry me around now! I actually asked him once, a couple of years ago after a pretty brutal training session. He told me we were going to the Land of Fire on business, I complained about being tired and asked him to carry me. He eyes narrowed so much, I thought they were closed and then he did this thing where he had this purple fire raging around him, it was super scary! I thought he was going to kill me!

He said that I would never be a ninja if this was too much work and if that was the case he could just leave me to fend for myself. Over tears, I told him I'd be good from now on.

That's why I always do exactly what Zabuza Sensei tells me to. I'm not sure what would happen to me if he wasn't here after all… I haven't got anyone else and I can't really look after myself yet…

I'm still not entirely sure why he's so nice to me…. Well, his version of nice at least. I used to think he was my father, until I asked him a few months ago. He actually laughed in my face! That's the first time I'd ever seen him laugh. After laughing in my face for a good ten seconds, he calmed down and told me that he knew my father, but he was long dead.

…weird thing to laugh about in my face I thought but definitely didn't say. I think maybe he was friends with my father or something? Promised to look after me maybe? I don't really know, since he refused to go into more detail. That's why I know I'm an orphan, because if I had a mom, I'd probably be with her right?

Anyway, Zabuza Sensei has been teaching me to be a ninja! He told me he wouldn't be around to look after me forever and this world was kill or be killed. So, I've been learning taijutsu and kenjutsu. He's also been building up my stamina and teaching me how to read and write… which I can tell he barely has the patience for. However, he keeps doing it and I think I can read and write pretty well now.

"Let's rest here for the night" Zabuza Sensei suddenly says, stopping in his tracks.

He pulls out a basic camping setup from a storage scroll he keeps on him and looks at me.

"Trap the surrounding area. When you're done, I want you to do the basic set"

"Yes sensei" I say, as I dash off to set traps.

I've also been learning about traps and ninja tools. It was sort of just added on to the rest of the stuff as if it was obvious. 'Knowledge in all areas is vital for ninja', Zabuza Sensei likes to say. Basically, if you meet a guy who's really good at something you've never seen before, then you're in trouble. Even if I never master the use of traps, Zabuza Sensei wants me to get to a level where I can spot and counter enemy traps.

The traps that I've been taught to set aren't anything particularly complicated or deadly. I mostly just use wire strings and attach the end to an embedded kunai near camp, so if anyone does approach us and trip the wire, we'll be aware.

'A ninja is never safe', Zabuza Sensei always says. So we have to ensure our own safety. Sensei is a Missing-Nin after all and more than once, Hunter-Nin have come to try and claim his bounty. Though, none of them seemed to be even remotely a challenge for Zabuza Sensei, who cut them all down with his giant blade Kubikiribocho.

Setting up the traps doesn't take me long, I've done it over a hundred times. Zabuza Sensei doesn't even spare me a glance when I get back, but I notice his sword Kubikiribocho is embedded into the ground near an open area. I guess that's where I'm supposed to train.

The basic set is simple enough, first is a hundred sets of sword swings with the Kubikiribocho. Then a round of taijustu practice, I just go through the basic kata of the Kirigakure style Zabuza Sensei taught me and 100 sets of every basic punch and kick. Then finally, I do as many sword swings with the Kubikiribocho as I can until I can no longer lift it. It's a bit tiring, but like the traps, I'm used to it by now.

When I'm finally done I walk steadily to my sleeping bag, exhausted from my workout, but Zabuza Sensei stops me.

"Saizo, here" Zabuza calmly says and throws me a sheathed katana.

I look at him weirdly. What's this for?

It must have been pretty obvious what I was thinking based on my face because Zabuza Sensei smirks under his face mask… At least, I think he is, it's hard to tell…

"It's your fourth birthday today, that's a present"

I blinked several times. It is? He's never given me a present before.

My confusion must have still been showing on my face, because Zabuza Sensei continues.

"The fourth birthday is an important one for aspiring shinobi, it means that your chakra network has become stable enough to begin training"

"What's chakra?"

Zabuza Sensei starts but then thinks to himself for a bit.

"Chakra is… Chakra is another tool shinobi use to fight. It exists inside everyone, but shinobi train themselves in order to use it in battle"

"How do I use it?"

"Through hard work. From now on, in addition to other training, you will train your chakra before sleep"

"How though?"

"To start…" He picks a leaf up off the ground and opens it up to show me, the leaf starts to dance around his palm.

"…You will use your chakra to manipulate a leaf on your hand"

"How though?"

Zabuza Sensei sighs in his usual 'I barely have the patience for this' way.

"First grab a leaf…"

I pick up a leaf.

"…Now I want you to close your eyes and feel inside your stomach, that's the center point of your chakra pathway"

I close my eyes and concentrate. There's something there, it's feels like some sort of energy, streaming around inside of me.

"When you can feel it, concentrate on moving that energy up to your hand holding the leaf"

I do as instructed and the energy responds to my thoughts. The chakra moves up to my hand and then suddenly the energy materializes outside of my body and the leaf bounces off of my hand. I jolt and open my eyes with a start.

Zabuza Sensei is calmly looking at me.

…Did I mess up?

"Good, that reaction is a sign that you have a larger than average chakra pool. Your goal for this stage of training is to control your chakra so that the leaf moves around within your hand rather than flying away from it"

Zabuza Sensei turns around and goes to his own sleeping bag.

Guess I better get started then.

One Year Later

My chakra control is improving a lot! Several months ago I was able to master control over the leaf within my palm, Zabuza Sensei then started me on learning how to stick leaves to various parts of my body. This way, he says, I can learn adequate movement of chakra to various parts of my body.

…But he still won't teach me any jutsu. Apparently, I don't have enough chakra yet. But he did say he would teach me one on my 6th birthday! So that's something.

Sometimes I watch Zabuza Sensei's personal training, and it's…Incredible. His sword, Kubikiribocho, which I have such a hard time swinging really simply is suddenly being used so fluidly. I'd think it must be a different sword entirely if I didn't feel the pressure come off of it every time it's swung.

The chakra that I'm struggling to use to hold a leaf to my forehead? It's being used to create water dragons. Every time I watch Sensei train, I realize how weak and far behind I really am. I was so proud when I got the leaf to dance on my palm…and yet everything I do feels so unimportant and small when compared to the water jutsu Sensei seems to do like it's nothing.

Though, I try to think positively. Obviously Sensei is a lot stronger than me, that's why he's a good Sensei! The stronger he is, the better training he can give me!

We don't seem to do much other than training. Zabuza Sensei takes us places on 'business', but his main business just seems to be talking to people… So he might be lying to me. Not that I'd ever question him on it.

The people in question never so much as glance at me and the rest of the time, we're always in remote areas training. One time, I saw some kids my age playing nearby where Zabuza Senbsei was doing 'business'. They were just running around with big smiles on their faces… It looked fun. Though Zabuza Sensei ordered me to follow him soon after his 'business' was completed and we were back to training.

All I can do is continue my training which Zabuza Sensei still seems to be committed to giving me even though I must seem so weak to someone like him. I still don't really understand, but until he decides I'm too annoying and leaves, I'll take as much advantage out of it as I can. He's also the only person who's ever really spoken to me before, life without him just seems so lonely… I need to be good so he'll stay.

To this end, I've begun waking up late at night to train some more secretly. I've found that after I use most of my chakra before bed, it seems to replenish after about 4 hours, so I make sure to get up and drain it again through training. I don't think Zabuza Sensei knows, or if he does, he hasn't said anything…though he never says much anyway. He probably does know, since he's Sensei after all, he probably hasn't said anything because he's happy for me to do it.

At least that's what I thought, because during tonight's training session…

"Saizo, what are you doing?" Zabuza Sensei's voice erupts from nearby.

My eyes are closed and I'm concentrating on sticking dozens of different leaves to different parts of my body. I barely avoid flinching and don't even open my eyes.

"Training"

"…It's Four in the morning"

"Perfect time to train"

A pause.

"…You will cease training at this hour, recovery is just as important as..." I interrupt him.

"I have recovered! My chakra had fully recovered!" I open my eyes and try to plead my case.

He frowns.

"You will listen to me when I tell you to do something" He glares back.

I flinch a bit under his glare. Why is he so against this? It doesn't make sense.

"Why! Isn't this what you want? I'm training! Getting stronger! That's what I'm supposed to do isn't it?!"

I try and remain calm when I'm speaking, but my voice is shaking and I can't look him in the eye. I'm defying him and it's really scary.

His frown deepens and my heart shrinks into my stomach.

"You are supposed to do as I tell you and nothing more"

I feel myself shrinking as he emits more pressure and my mind just cracks. I let out some mumblings aloud:

"But, why? I just… I…My chakra had recovered and I…"

I look down at the ground, tears beginning to form in my eyes.

Stop, stop, stop. You can't cry. Ninjas don't cry.

I wipe the tears out of my eyes and force myself to stop crying.

I hear Zabuza Sensei sigh from in front of me…He didn't see right?

"Go to sleep"

I look up at him, I don't understand what he's thinking. I thought I was doing a good thing?

A pause.

"We'll talk about it tomorrow" Zabuza Sensei says more gently.

I frown, but nod.

I don't understand.