Changing Realities
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. Only the plot line of this story is mine.
Chapter One: Beyond the Change
"I hope we meet again in the next life." The young man said as he disappeared into the gathering fog.
Dark brown eyes flew open wide, suddenly startled into their conscious position. Their owner, a teenaged boy, was sat upright in his bed. Haku Hiwatari was one of the best assassins the country of the Waves had. Despite his age and over all frail appearance, he had more kills to his name than any other assassin in the entire country. The "silent hunter of the mist," a name he'd earned many times over for his stealthy attacks and silent kills.
For all of his accomplishments, however, he still had to keep a low profile. There were always other assassins from other countries after him. It didn't bother him all that much, but having to kill every would be bounty hunter or assassin that came after his life wasn't any way to remain inconspicuous. Hence his current faux identity.
Lady Natomi was the only heir to a vast amount of land in the Mist Country. However, recently she'd gotten very ill and passed on in her sleep. The very next day, as fate had it, Haku had been passing through and one of the townspeople mistook him for Natomi. Since most had no idea that the real lady was dead, and Haku had no idea what was going on, he went along with it.
Now, some four months later, he was still pretending to be the lady of the castle. It was a nice arrangement for everyone involved. He had a place to lay low, and the people had someone to protect them, even if they didn't know it. Of course, once Natomi's next of kin came to claim the lands he'd have to leave, but until then he was set.
"Lady Natomi, it's time to get up." Haku sat up straighter, pulling the covers up to hide his exposed chest.
This was one of the problems that came with living here. Most of the servants and other staff thought that he really was a girl. Now normally this wasn't a problem since he was very feminine in appearance anyway, but since the summer heat had forced him into his unmentionables in an attempt to stay cool…He'd been forced to hide himself on more than one occasion.
"Hold on, I'm not decent." He called out, frantically searching for his night clothes.
The maid came in anyway, her arms laden with clean clothes in a hamper. "I won't look, miss. You go on and get yourself dressed while I put these away."
This was one of the times the brunette was glad for his ninja speed. Which meant that all the maid would see if she were to look was a brownish blur and a flash of pale skin. He quickly darted into the washroom, bringing his clothes for that day in with him. Once dressed Haku came back out, smoothing out the fabric of his kimono as he walked.
"So, Cesari-san, what's on the agenda for today?"
The maid paused in her task, seeming to realize that she'd forgotten to mention her lady's schedule for the day. "Forgive me, Natomi-sama, I forgot for a moment. Well, first you have a meeting with the diplomatic envoy from the Flame Country, then lunch with the Mizukage at 12:30, and you promised an audience to the people this evening as well." As she finished speaking the maid straightened somewhat, seeming to consider her next words carefully. "My lady….A message has arrived for you, from Kiri."
This got Haku's attention immediately. It had been a long while since his last assignment, and he'd actually begun to suspect that Kiri had forgotten where he was. The Mizukage did not know him by sight, had only ever contacted him through messengers. Hence why the man didn't just present it to him personally since he'd be seeing him that afternoon. The brown eyed assassin shooed the maid away, only opening the mission summons after the woman had gone.
"Let me see what Mist has for me this time. Hmmm…."
He read the letter quickly, his mind forming around several strategies for the man who's death he was supposed to cause.
Mamotchi, Zabuza
Origin: Hidden Mist Village
Kill count: Unknown, predicted to be in the hundreds.
Mission Status: Track and Destroy
Level: S-Rank
Warning, Mamotchi is to be considered highly dangerous. Approach with all cautions observed.
Haku could feel a cold smile slip onto his face. He had been expecting this mission for some time now, ever since he'd first heard about the mysterious rogue ninja. It was surprising that it had taken Kiri this long to assign him this mission, especially since the man had killed nearly all of the other assassins sent after him.
"So, it's finally come to battle between us. Mist's best assassin versus the rogue of the Water Nation. Hm…this battle will truly be glorious. A battle for the history books, I'm sure. Well, I hope you are half the challenge that your profile makes you out to be.