Shallow Days, Dead Skies Ahead
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto
A/N: Sorry for the long wait! Exams were a killer (four in one day? You might as well shoot me) and honestly inspiration left me with his things. It's been a rough time between us, but I think the two of us can sort it out. In any case – enjoy! Haku is one of my favorite characters!
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Haku
"Purpose"
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Haku didn't understand why Zabuza wanted him in the first place. When the masked man looked down at him the first day they'd met, snow on his shoulders, hunger in his eyes, Haku knew Zabuza wanted him. For what reason he didn't know – he was a disgrace to the world, having a Kekkei Genkai.
He might as well have been marked, the way people looked at him as if he were trash. Which, he was. He was trash without a home, a purpose, or even a family. He had no important person, and obviously no one thought of him as important. In the world's eyes he was discarded trash, left to be forgotten. He would have been lucky if his memory remained.
Yet, in Zabuza's eyes, he saw no hatred or pain. In fact, he could see somewhere, lying layers underneath, that he had been forgotten, too. He was feared for his strength, his indifference; he was just like Haku.
Maybe that was why he craved for him. He wanted that acknowledgement of pain that Haku knew of all too well.
Then again, there were many other castaways to choose from in the world. The shinobi world was a cruel place full of villainous figures and fearful citizens. Surely with these factors others would be cast aside as well, right? Why would Zabuza settle for Haku when he could have better, more experienced allies?
Why did Zabuza choose him, a rat in the gutter, of all people? Why was it him that was granted purpose in Zabuza's world? Why was Haku given privilege to Zabuza's eyes to behold, him and him alone? There were better choices. There were people without the demonic curse of a bloodline.
Well, maybe since Zabuza was known as the Demon of the Mist he would only need demons for companions. Those who had strayed from the path of light – but when did Haku ever fall into darkness? Was he merely born with it? Was he unaware of the hell that coursed through his veins?
Zabuza never gave him an answer, nor did he ever ask. It was an unsettled agreement between the two of them. Zabuza merely asked for his loyalty and usefulness, and he gave it without a further question. After all, the Demon of the Mist gave him what he'd always craved for – an important person, one to always cherish and protect.
Still, it always left him wondering why he was chosen of all the people in the world. Even though Zabuza treated Haku like he was an annoying, bothersome thing sometimes, he always came through in the end for him. He always made Haku feel special, like he was there for a reason, a purpose. But what was Haku's purpose, anyway?
To protect, to comfort, to be loyal and follow out every command – were those his purpose? Haku was to be a tool, without emotions or love or want. He was to merely follow and obey, like a dog of sorts.
People would ask him how he could be content with these burdens, like Uzumaki Naruto. How could he be? His only purpose was to serve. His own dreams were meaningless to Zabuza, yet he was content. With Zabuza, Haku could be content. With only one person in the world out of millions, he was perfectly okay with it, and all of the bloodshed and heartache that came along with it.
But why? How could he be content like this? How could he be content knowing he was a tool, and with all of the people in the world, how could he live with how he could be easily replaced? Why was he content with all of these surviving factors?
The answer dawned on Haku only seconds after Zabuza had asked him to join him: he was content because of that purpose. Without the purpose, he was garbage. Zabuza saved him from being alone, a nothing. He saved Haku from himself and the rest of the forbidding world.
That was why Haku was content. Because even if he were just a tool, it was better than being a nothing, a nobody. It was better than loneliness, and better than the painful memories. With Zabuza, Haku could be something of use in the world. Without him, Haku was nothing again.
Poppycock to the people who thought Haku knew nothing. He knew his purpose, he knew his place, and he knew exactly who he was doing it for.
He was doing it for Zabuza, the Demon of the Mist, the wielder of the Executioner's Blade, and the keeper of Haku's heart.