She was alive. He had done it.
Tears of joy stained his cheeks as the girl's breathing started to even out, he didn't care about anything else right now, the blonde could only look down at her pale, snow white skin as she lay there now blissfully unconscious. His breath hitched as he let out a relieved sigh, a laugh of triumph weakly escaped the jinchuuriki; his crisis was over now at least.
"Well, well, well, it looks like the great demon of the mist and his little follower couldn't even kill a useless old man." Spat a disgusting, short man who stood in front of a large amount of hired mercenaries in an attempt to look threatening.
"Well at least I don't have to pay those assholes." The man scoffed before letting out an exaggerated, mocking laugh, this man was Gato. The vile business man began a confident stride along the bridge, his goons not far behind him, as he searched for something.
"Find and kill the bridge builder." He ordered coldly, as soon as he did, the small army charged forward as if happy to carry out the command.
"Naruto!" Kakashi alerted as he got into a fighting stance, the leaf genin snapped back to reality, his peaceful moments spent just staring happily at the ex-mist kunoichi were interrupted, the blonde was not in a forgiving mood. Momentarily shocked by battle cries that could be heard from behind them, Kakashi and Naruto were surprised to see that a large crowd had gathered with make shift weapons and armour all rallied behind Inari.
"We won't sit back and do anything any longer!" The small boy bellowed as he led the villagers. With a roar of courage the civilians charged fully intending to push back there oppressors.
"Kage buushin no jutsu!" Naruto bellowed, his hands forming the trademark cross shape as he effortlessly created fifty shadow clones, Kakashi soon followed suit
"Kage Buushin no jutsu!" He yelled as he matched Naruto's fifty causing them to now greatly outnumber the opposing army of untrained mercenaries.
The blonde nodded towards Kakashi, who then in turn nodded back, facing the army who weren't intimidated by sheer numbers, the two decided to do something about this new attack force that didn't have the sense to back down.
"Fuuton: Cyclone!" Naruto cried as he blown a huge gust of wind towards the enemy from his outstretched hands, the violent wind causing most of the mercenaries to raise their arms in anticipation for the full attack.
"Katon: Fire stream!" Kakashi announced as he spat out an intense flame that met the wind, combining the two jutsu to make a devastating inferno.
The two combined attacks scorched through the air, the sheer force of the attack killing a large number of the mercenary army, leaving others quivering in fear, those with sense immediately turned to flee. Soon all that remained was a terrified Gato, the man gulped as his life was about to be ripped from him. Naruto sped towards the man, and within an instant he was upon him, he lofted the disgusting man into the air, gripping him by the throat.
The coward was seen kicking his feet in desperation, clutching at the genin's arm attempting to free himself but it was an effort in vain. The blonde looked him dead in the eyes, the pain Haku had suffered through, the loss of Zabuza, the oppression that the wave country had suffered, it was all down to this miserable excuse for a human being and his greed. Naruto wanted to kill this man, he could feel it, he wanted to rip out his heart and show it to his dying eyes, deep down he knew though, that it was not his place to do so.
The leaf genin hurled the short man towards the hungry wave crowd, the militia happy to be given their revenge, cheered in triumph. It didn't take long for the man to shriek out in utter pain as the villagers killed him in the most torturous way possible, the blood of their greatest enemy now soaked the symbol of their hope; The Great Naruto bridge.
Naruto's tired mind fell back to Haku, immediately he ran to her side, worrying over her condition once again. Her wound had closed but she was still unconscious. Carefully he picked her up bridal style, deciding he would take her to the hospital, he couldn't tell her current condition from his little medical knowledge. He looked towards Kakashi who had just done the honour of giving Zabuza a 'sea burial' by throwing him over the bridge into the water below. Kakashi let out a sigh and did his best to put up an eye smile in an attempt to ease his student.
"Come on Naruto; let's go back…you did well today." Kakashi spoke softly; he put a firm hand on Naruto's shoulder while the two walked back to the village. Kakashi then collapsed from exhaustion, letting out a sigh the blonde left Tazuna and the other thankful villagers to tend to the silver haired scarecrow, he was taken to Tazuna's house where he would be able to rest in peace, well except for the annoyances that were his other two genin team members, but they weren't so bad.
The blonde couldn't help but notice Inari standing there, a proud look on his face as he gazed up at the heavens, he began to wander over to the boy, and then considered that he should be left alone, besides he had to get Haku to the hospital, he really hoped she was stable.
"I did it dad! I protected the place I love with my own two hands just like you told me too!" Inari yelled for his father to hear, a lone tear washed down his cheek, not wasting time to wipe it away he ran back into the village, the place that he had defended.
Several hours had passed after the doctor had examined Haku, with the blonde nervously tapping his foot as the man gave his diagnosis, he was nothing short of amazed at the whole process, the sword was apparently reconstructing the cells in Haku's body in order to regenerate such a deep wound, the doctor had never seen anything like it and couldn't possibly give an estimate on when she would be back to full health.
With Kakashi severely exhausted from the use of so many shadow clones as well as the strain of the sharingan, he would be on rest duty for a few days at least and without any remaining soldier pills, Naruto couldn't even help the recovery process, although he was much too focused on Haku to think about leaving wave. With Sakura and Sasuke still at Tazuna's house he wondered if they knew about Haku.
He looked over her sleeping form and softly stroked away the stray hairs falling upon her face, he smiled sadly, she looked at peace somewhat, as she lay there still, her body raising and falling with her gentle breathing. He took his seat in the comfortable visiting chair, unconsciously taking the girl's delicate hand in his own, he began gently stroking it with his thumb, he couldn't help but find that it put him at ease and still couldn't manage to grasp just how soft her small hands were.
He sat there, strangely relaxed about the whole situation, he enjoyed the silence of the room, the lights were off and the blinds were drawn closed, giving the room a soothing darkness that invited comfort as well as a strange feeling of peace. Switching his gaze back to Haku he couldn't help but lean over and brush the stray hairs from her face once again, as if it were his duty to do so without fail.
Seeing a slight twitch of her lips as they curved upwards slightly after he brushed away her falling locks made a smile form on his own face, he soon found himself forgetting how bad her condition was, as he looked towards her serene, sleeping form. For some reason he couldn't help thinking about his team mates, he looked down sadly at the girl beside him, what if they didn't agree to what he was doing? He almost lost her once, but this time she could be forced away from him.
The blonde sat silently suffering as thoughts sieged his mind; he glanced around the calming room, its dim blue glow from the drawn blinds reflecting the evening sun served to put his mind at ease. He could figure out something to get the girl of the hook, couldn't he? Right now he wasn't sure, he wasn't sure about a lot of things, he just knew more than anything that he wouldn't abandon her.
It didn't take long for fatigue to start effecting him, having not rested after the battle and the hour growing late he found himself fighting against sleep, trying his best to stay awake to stay by the girls side a little longer, to his disappointment, eventually even he succumbed to a peaceful slumber.
The morning sun shone brightly into the room, despite the room still being dim, the odd ray of light stabbing at the blonde's eyes caused him to stir. He felt a strange feeling on his forehead, lifting his head up off the bed slightly to investigate he realised he had fallen asleep on the hand that was stroking Haku's. Naruto sat up straight, stretching for all he was worth, while letting out a load yawn. He now took the time to remember why this room would be dark even in day light.
There was no one in the hospital. Most of the villagers had formed an assault on Gato's company, with team 7 still officially on a mission due to the bridge being incomplete; they also had the duty of guarding Tazuna while sieging the vile man's company with the intentions of over throwing it and taking everything for their own. An operation which could take at least a couple of weeks leaving Naruto to take care of Haku in the hospital alone. Though he couldn't help but consider that he preferred it that way, the time alone in the room with the girl was precious and unlike anything he had ever done before.
The soft sound of rustling bed sheets caught his attention, looking down, he saw the girl rolling over several times, seemingly in discomfort. He knew that it wouldn't be from pain due to the long term pain killers the doctor administered the previous day. Offering what little support he could, the blonde resumed his previous activity, holding her smaller hand in his own, carefully stroking it with his thumb as if it was a fragile object that would shatter under the slightest force.
She turned over to lie on her back, seeming to relax into the touch or so Naruto thought, to his displeasure he would have to pull himself away from the action as he needed to refill Haku's water drip. Patrolling around the vacant hospital he found the correct room, the storage room contained a large amount of various medicines, it was much too clinical for the blonde causing him to head back to the ice users room in good time. He went about changing Haku's empty water drip with the new one he had found, glancing down at her as he did so. if there was one thing Naruto didn't expect to be doing while on his mission it was 'working' in a hospital, but he wasn't complaining.
With his duties tended to he sat in his chair, claiming it as his own, he had shut the door on his way in and couldn't help to feel like he was in his own little world, isolated from everyone else it was just him and her. Gazing at her he saw a small innocent smile dressing her face; he couldn't help but smile back as he slumped back in his chair almost instantly finding comfort.
He soon found the hours passing at an alarming rate, his peace and tranquillity all but disturbed by the sudden battle with sleep that had descended upon him. Soon he felt himself become submissive, the rooms silence only helping him to drift off. This time he happily rested his head on the side of the bed, Haku's hand still in his own, giving him a feeling of closeness he was definitely not used too.
"N-Naruto-sama…" he heard, his eyes shooting open at the sound of Haku's tired voice, he looked up to see her chocolate eyes barely open, but managed to bring a comforting warm smile to his face which was soon returned by the tired girl.
"Y-You…saved me…" she spoke quietly as she strained herself even further, Naruto just nodded his head, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb, causing the girl to smile a little wider.
"Of course I did..." He offered sadly in a soothing tone, then continued
"There's no way I'd let my precious person die…" The blonde gazed down at the bedridden girl; he giving her a bright smile of reassurance.
"But you've gotta rest if you wanna get better, okay?" Haku managed a slight nod and closed her eyes again as she felt his thumb tracing her hand, a feeling she had come to enjoy. She found herself relaxing once again and soon she drifted off to sleep.
The blonde couldn't help but feel a little disappointed, it was nice to get to speak to the girl he had been caring for. Now he was alone with the silence again; though the girl seemed to cuddle up a little closer to his hand causing his smile to reappear. He really didn't know how he would of reacted if he had lost her. Naruto let out a relieved sigh, shaking off the thought and decided to go back to sleep himself, he considered the fact that Haku had awoken to be a good sign at least.
The morning soon came, the blonde rolled his shoulders hoping to relieve his stiff muscles due to the strange seated sleeping position he had been suffering through lately. Naruto stood up, deciding he would stretch his legs by walking around the empty hospital to look for anything useful he could take to ease his discomfort.
It wasn't difficult to locate a low dosage pain killer in the vast storage cupboard, at first he was a little taken back by just how many different types of medicine there really was, but managed to eventually find what he was looking for. He found himself thinking of his team mates again, wondering what they were currently busy with, more importantly he considered Kakashi may have informed them he was currently taking care of an enemy ninja.
The subject had been surfacing more and more lately, with the quiet hospital only being disturbed by his footsteps striking the polished floor, he found that thinking seemed to be the only way to really pass the time around the place. It worried him to think that the girl may be taken from him, in fact it terrified him. He let out a quiet growl while clenching his fists in defiance.
'There's no way I'd let anyone take her from me!' Naruto thought, he intended to care for the girl as long as she wanted him too, though she was an enemy, he really didn't think of her as one. She wasn't his enemy even if she fought against Team seven. He found himself mulling over different scenarios in his head, all of them consisted of him telling Team seven that Haku was important to him, refusing to let her be punished, though with a lack of authority and no support from his team mates all being present in these day dreams, he really wasn't feeling confident.
Naruto entered the patients room where he had spent most of his time recently, pushing open the white clinical door as he did so. His empty chair seemed inviting after his somewhat disheartening walk around the large building. He took his seat, revelling in the comfort of the luxurious chair once again. His thoughts quickly surfaced as they fought against any form of boredom the blonde may have to suffer through otherwise.
'I can't exactly just bring her back to Konoha...' He groaned inwardly while rubbing the sleep from his eyes, which was true, he couldn't just take her back to Konoha, although her identity was safe thanks to her hunter mask, she would have to list her abilities to be added to the ranks of Konoha and no doubt she would be put up as breeding stock to add her kekkei genkai to the village's collection thanks to the greedy council, in fact if they found out he cared about her they'd probably do it just to spite him.
For some reason though, Naruto had no intentions of having her join Konoha's ninja ranks, he had to admit that Haku was a powerful kunoichi with a rare bloodline to boot, he was never concerned with her not being strong enough to hold her own, she was not like that, he had never seen her as the type to be a damsel in distress. Still, she was precious to him, he'd fuss over her all he could; doing his best to keep her safe from any harm and from what he knew, she didn't exactly enjoy the ninja lifestyle anyway, especially the killing involved.
He shook his head clear of such thoughts and went back to focusing on Haku, he kind of hoped she would wake up again, at least he would have too tend to her needs, where as he was feeling rather useless at this moment in time, though he didn't let it show. He was thankful for this quiet time, he was able to be left alone with his thoughts and he had a lot of them. His mission in wave had already went above the estimated time and with team seven working against what remained of Gato's forces as well as his duty to care for Haku it was going to be a while before he would be leaving.
He looked up, breaking his chain of thoughts and walked over to the drawn blinds, spreading them open, just wide enough to look out. He saw that it was already night time, no wonder he was starting to feel tired. He had to wonder if this room had some sort of time seal active as he couldn't seem to be able to comprehend just how fast the time had passed by in his own little world that he was currently living in, shut off from anyone else but the girl by his side, though he couldn't honestly say that he didn't like it that way however.
He let out a long yawn that echoed around the silent room
'Yup… time for bed.' He decided as he staggered over to the spare bed in the far corner, after glancing at Haku's sleeping form one last time, he climbed under the covers and rolled to face the wall, the cold bed soon warming and inviting him to a pleasant sleep.
Her hazel eyes slowly eased open, closed again then in a slow movement opened fully, she could see the clinical white hospital ceiling through her blurry vision, a slow blink later and the room was now clear to see. She frowned; she couldn't feel him, her hand felt strangely cold, lacking the blonde's presence made her feel uneasy, she didn't remember ever feeling such a thing.
She moved her eyes to look hopefully to the left, all she could see though to her disappointment was a window with the blinds drawn shut; although the room was shrouded in darkness it didn't affect her vision, so she decided to check the right side of her, almost telling herself that he would definitely be there. With as much haste as she could manage, she tilted her head so that she was lying on her right cheek.
She analysed the area, the vacant visiting chair immediately caught her attention leaving a sinking feeling in her stomach, glancing to the door she saw it was tightly shut.
'He's not here…' She thought to herself, momentarily crushed by loneliness.
"N-Naruto-S-sama? ..." she whimpered quietly, her chocolate eyes studying the area for any movement, her panic started building up as she found herself clenching her blanket tightly in her hands, denying that he wasn't here.
"Naruto-sama?" she questioned in a louder voice than before, she waited silently for a few seconds before her panic rose past the breaking point, she began weakly flailing, trying to force her body to stand, unable to do so she thrashed around in the bed.
"Naruto-sama!? Naruto-sama!? Naruto-sama!?" She shrieked as loud as possible, her desperation evident in her painful screams.
Naruto's eyes cracked open at the loud cries and he instantly shot to his feet, pained by what he saw, he rushed over to her figure in it was still crying out his name, the sound causing his heart to shatter. He would definitely be telling her to remove that honorific when she was healthy. As soon as he was by her side, not wanting to shock her with sudden touch he decided to try and soothe her with his presence.
"Shhhh, it's okay Haku-chan…I'm here, it's okay…" he spoke softly a gentle smile on his face as he continued to chant things which he hoped would put the girl at ease, almost instantly Haku stopped thrashing and lay in place on her back, letting out a staggered breath, Naruto leaned over the bed so that he was well within her vision and smiled down at her.
Haku's lips curved upwards,
'He was here…' She thought happily to herself, the feeling warming her through.
"N-Naruto-sama…" she muttered, as she store up at him, her eyes dancing as they tried to take in every single detail of him as he pressed his hand against her soft cheek, stroking it slowly which made her let out another breath of relief.
"I was only in the other bed; I think you woke up the whole country!" He whispered softly before chuckling, trying to lighten the mood somewhat, a smile blessed Haku's features, although her throat now felt terribly sore from all of that shouting.
"Try to go back to sleep… you're doing great, at this rate you'll be better in no time!" Naruto encouraged with a foxy grin as he turned to return to his own bed. As he did he felt a soft hand stroke his arm in a failed attempt to grip it, he turned back to Haku whose arm now dangled tiredly off the bed, he took it in his own before slowly guiding it back to sit on top of the blanket, surprised by the girl's sudden movement.
"P-please stay, Naruto-sama…" she whispered weakly while she backed away slightly as if trying to hide herself. Naruto let out a sigh at her retreating form and pulled back the cover slightly, looking back to her to check if he had understood what she meant, but he was only met with expecting brown eyes.
Pulling it back further he slid in to the bed, finding it was already warm unlike the other, now unused bed, he rolled on his side to face Haku who now sported a small smile. Seeing he had entered the bed, she instinctively rolled and wrapped her arms around him, nuzzling into his chest, refusing to let him go again. Naruto was a little taken back by the movement at first but soon returned the gesture as he roped his arms around the girl and began reaching up the back of her hair, carefully untying her bun, he allowed her stunning midnight locks to flow freely down her back, as it did so, he began combing through them softly hoping to relax the girl.
Upon feeling the affectionate movement she couldn't help but try to nuzzle even further into his chest, hugging him a little closer, she let out a sigh of relief, quite comfortable with the new situation. She had never experienced affection like this before, it felt warm and she couldn't help but think she was in the safest place in the world, the closeness left her feeling cared for, she truly felt important. Soon the comfort of the tender embrace became too much, her eye lids became heavy as they fell, closing and opening several times until she gave up.
"G-Good…night…N-Naruto-sama…" she whispered sleepily before drifting off once more, deciding to join her the blonde snuggled closer to his precious person and fell asleep also.
He stretched outwardly in his bed before finding he was somewhat restricted, looking downwards he saw Haku, a smile still decorating her face as she clung to his waist, he smiled happily, the feeling of being cared for made him feel something he couldn't describe, the only thing he could do was smile before noting that he had to get out of bed. Carefully he pulled her arms from around him, softly resting them on the bed, he was about to get up he to begin his 'hospital chores' until he heard her.
"N-noo…" she whimpered sadly while still asleep, her arms finding their way around him once again as the girl cuddled close to him.
"Okay, okay I'll stay." He whispered softly, letting out a happy chuckle as he pulled her close, there really was no way he could find it in himself to leave her after that, he rested his chin on her head, holding her tight.
"N-Naruto-sama… You're still here! Thank goodness!" She exclaimed, squeezing the blonde tightly with a smile as she woke up.
"I thought you'd trust me a little more than that." Naruto said with in mock hurt, flashing her a cheeky foxy grin.
"I just…" she started softly, but Naruto soon interrupted, changing the subject.
"Did you sleep well Haku-chan?" he asked casually, looking into her chocolate eyes as he did, the honorific he used caused Haku to blush slightly before answering.
"A lot better, thank you Naruto-sama, although I still feel a little tired, I expect I should recover soon."
Naruto scratched his head nervously, he didn't really know what to say
"That's good to hear, but please don't call me Naruto-sama…" the blonde whined
"But I must! You saved my life…and even helped me while I have been recovering… you gave me a new purpose in life, to be more than just a tool." She replied, desperate to prove her point. Naruto sighed in defeat which didn't go unnoticed by Haku.
"Have I disappointed you Naruto-sama?" She spoke sadly; Naruto just shook his head and ran a hand through her soft midnight locks.
"It's alright Haku-chan, I didn't mean to upset you…" he replied with a warm smile, as he as he continued to trace his hands through her hair.
"You don't have to act so formal around me, that's all." He said softly as she leaned into the hug, and rested her head on his shoulder.
"Okay…I'll try my best, Naruto-sa… Naruto-kun." She promised, needing to correct herself caused Naruto chuckle, to his delight a small smile took form on Haku's face as she looked up at him, a happiness that she hadn't felt before caused her to smile a little wider.
"Naruto-kun?" She chirped, catching the blonde's attention as she looked up at him, happily
"Yeah, Haku-chan?" He replied lazily, he was far too comfortable for his own good, at this rate he would never want to move
"You make me happier than I've ever been." Haku announced with a large smile dressing her face, the blonde felt the heat rise in his cheeks at the beautiful girl's words, he couldn't help but glance away in embarrassment, but noticed Haku eagerly awaiting his reply.
"Haku-chan…I really don't know what I would of done if I lost you…" he squeezed her tightly at the very thought, refusing to let her go, he'd keep her safe no matter what
"I've never met anyone who is so kind, gentle and well…someone who cares about me." Naruto revealed with a weak smile, he was happy, yet saying something like that was somehow saddening.
He felt a feather light touch stroke his whisker marks, the ice user's delicate fingers traced along them, a soft pink blushed washed across her cheeks from the blonde's words
"Something this wonderful…it truly feels like a dream" she whispered softly to him, watching his cheeks flush a deep crimson as she continued to caress his whisker marks.
"H-Haku-chan…" The blonde stuttered out shocked by the girl's actions, he collected his thoughts, his team entered his mind ruining the moment slightly as he considered there reaction
"I won't let anyone take you away from me." He declared much to the confusion of the ex-mist kunoichi, she felt arms softly travel up and down her back, the gentle movements caused her to shiver slightly making her let out an embarrassed giggle.
"I don't wish to ever be separated from you Naruto-kun…you are my only precious person…but also the only person I need." Haku whispered sweetly, a genuine smile on her face as she nuzzled against the blonde's neck. Naruto rested his head over her shoulder, a large grin present on his face as he felt such immeasurable happiness
"I was supposed to change your water…at this rate I'll never want to leave you even for a moment." The blonde chuckled softly then felt arms rope around his neck pulling him against the ice user.
"I'd rather be thirsty than let you leave me." She huffed, pulling away to show the blonde her pout of protest causing him to let out a soft laugh
"Too bad Hime, I have to take care of you, there's no way I ll let you dehydrate." He teased, her cheeks lit up with a heavy blush
"H-H-Hime?!" She stuttered out before diving into Naruto's chest as a means of hiding herself from the sudden embarrassment.
"That's right…" Naruto whispered near her ear, hugging her tight against him before continuing
"you'll let me go now right? It's my job to take care of you after all." He teased, chuckling happily as he did.
"I-i-if you do then…then! Then I won't wake up for a week!" Haku threatened, her grip becoming vice tight around the blonde's waist as she cuddled him, forcing him to concede. With a sigh Naruto knew when to give up in these kind of situations, as much as he'd like to call her bluff he'd really rather not risk it.
"Okay, okay you win." He said snuggling against her, the ex-mist kunoichi happily returned the movement letting out a giggle in triumph
"Good… you had better get used to it." She teased, giggling louder at her victory; she couldn't help but feel happy around the blonde.
Crossing his fingers behind her back her whispered his trademark technique
"Kage buushin no jutsu" the inaudible noise causing Haku to hum, questioning him
"hmmm? What was that Naruto-kun?" She asked ready to tease him once again, she wouldn't accept him grumbling after all.
"Haha…I'm just comfortable…let's go back to sleep." The blonde replied grinning widely at the girl only causing her to blush at the idea of him enjoying her presence so much
"W-well I too am still tired…" She admitted shyly. She soon made herself comfortable against his neck and held him close, refusing to let him slip away.
'No one beats Naruto Uzumaki!' The blonde sniggered to himself quietly while closing his eyes, resting his chin upon the Haku's soft midnight hair as his clone silently left the room to fetch a new water drip.
"…Where is your clone heading Naruto-kun?" Haku whispered into the boy's neck causing him to laugh nervously in response.
'Okay…no one except her…' He thought to himself before pulling her a little closer.
Thank you to everyone who has supported the story so far!
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