Part 7

-Seven Years Ago-

A five-year old Haru snuck out of his room, looking left and right to check if the coast was clear. Smiling brightly, he made his way down the corridor to a door that was at the end of the hallway.

Looking behind him, he smirked at the dark hallway and then opened the door slowly. Rushing inside, he closed the door behind himself and pumped his fist in the air. He'd finally done it, entered his grandfather's study.

Grinning, he ran over to the white and red robe, hung up on the wall next to a picture of his grandfather grinning at the camera. Staring up at his idol, he stretched his tiny arm out to the picture, wishing the man was here.

Dropping his arm and grin, he curiously turned around to the desk that had scrolls sprawled out on it like the man had just been there. Hopping on top of the chair, Haru smiled at the kunai on the desk. His father and uncle had never let him use or touch one before.

Haru grabbed at the sharp kunai with stars in his eyes and tossed it from hand to hand until he accidentally cut himself, dripping a droplet of blood on the desk. Hissing in pain and trying to hold back the scream he wanted to let out, he instead winked and opened his eyes to the desk glowing a deep green.

Placing down the kunai Haru stared in shock at the desk as strange kanji spread along the desk and moved back when a lower half of the desk opened up, revealing three books.

Picking one up called Tale of the gutsy Ninja, he frowned and placed it down. The next didn't have a name but instead looked to be an old leathery journal. Placing that one down he then picked up the last book, Icha Icha Paradise Vol 1. Placing that one down on top of the journal he glanced at the grinning picture of his grandfather in confusion.

Putting the first book back, Haru's eyes widened in shock when the hallway light turned on and heard footsteps approaching the room. Panicking, he closed the drawer and stuffed the books inside his pants and wiped the blood from the desk.

Haru watched with wide eyes as his mother opened the door and looked at him with tired, annoyed eyes. Shivering under her gaze, he silently hopped off the chair and quickly walked past the unfriendly woman avoiding eye contact.

Making it back to his door he made the mistake of looking back at her only to see her sneering at him with a glare. Shutting his door behind him, Haru crawled into his bed and dug the books out of his pants.

That night he hugged his grandfather's books until he fell asleep, wondering why his mother and everybody else seemingly hated him.

-Present-

Haru woke up cold, the girl who fell asleep atop him sitting down over the, what looked to be asleep Zabuza. He watched as her palms glowed a bright green, healing the man's wounds.

He snapped his head to the side when her empty eyes peeked up at him pointingly. With his first blush of the day he faced to his left and saw two boys around his age roasting some food. Just then his stomach growled loud enough to grab the attention of the two boys who smiled at him.

Smiling at their smiles, Haru sweat dropped when they began flaunting their cooked food on a stick by waving it in the air and chuckling at him. Feeling his annoyance hit its peak, he frowned and tried to force his way through his ice cuffs.

"Hey you bastards!" He yelled at them for their continued laughing fit. Haru gulped in fear when a shuriken impaled the tree right next to his ear and the boy's meat. Following its trajectory, he landed his eyes on the hateful eye of Zabuza, with a throbbing vein on his head.

"Shut up you weak brats, or I'll dispose of you," Zabuza stated closing his unbandaged eye, grunting at the healing chakra that spread throughout his body.

"Sarutobi, what the hell is up with your team?" Zabuza asked.

Haru did not understand what he meant. Yeah, they had Kakashi there, but he only showed up whenever Rin would ask him to and Daisuke was just a summon. Gulping he opened his mouth to talk, but changed his mind feeling the man release his chakra around him and sigh in relief.

Haru choked on his breath again, with his mind and body insisting he run from the dark chakra oozing from the man. "Going to speak brat? If not, I'll have my little hounds tear you limb from limb."

Haku watched as Haru opened his mouth to speak, but stayed quiet not speaking. Now wasn't the time to joke around, her sensei would order his death if continued to be ignored. She looked into his panicked green eyes and then saw that he was afraid of the downed Zabuza. He wasn't until Zabuza-sensei… She'd test her hypothesis.

Lowering her eyes to her green hands she canceled her jutsu eliciting a displeased grunt from the Seven Swordsman and his chakra flare telling her to continue or else. She apologized and looked at Haru who flinched and frowned.

Activating her healing jutsu she whispered, "Haru-san seems to be a highly sensitive sensor Zabuza-sama, could you maybe tone it down for him."

Haku herself flinched, feeling Zabuza flare his chakra to the absolute maximum causing the boy to pass out immediately. She had no doubt that if the leaf ninja were still in the area they would know their location.

Laughing, Zabuza opened his unbandaged eye and looked at the girl with glee. "Nice catch Haku, now after we kill the others I'll hold this brat and the Namikaze ransom, and make a fortune. We've really hit the jackpot," he declared while laughing before erupting in a coughing fit.

Haku increased her chakra output of her jutsu. She didn't think they should continue with the mission any longer. The Kakashi Hatake and the three tails Jinchuriki Rin Hatake were ranked S and A. The skill difference spoke given how her sensei lost to just Kakashi and the monkey summon. It was foolish, but she was here to be used not for her opinions.

Letting her eyes fall on the brown haired Konoha ninja, she thought about his promise to strengthen her. She wanted it done soon.

XxLine BreakxX

When Haru opened his eyes for the third time, since being captured he found himself propped up next to the fire that the other boys were using earlier. Drooling at the fish being roasted over the fire he didn't bother reaching his hands out thinking they were still stuck in the ice.

He reached up and caught a piece of meat that was thrown his way by Haku, "Eat," was all she said gesturing to the food in front of him. Cautiously grabbing the stick and biting down on the impaled fish, he smiled at her and then dug in.

Watching him scarf down all the food and then stand up stretching, she expected him to dart away, but was pleasantly surprised when he just stood there staring at her under the night sky. Smiling softly for the first time in quite a while, she got up and gestured for him to follow her further in the woods.

Haru gulped and with some blood leaking from his flaring nostrils, he followed the girl groping the air in front of him. He halted when Haku stopped and turned to him with a delicate eyebrow raised.

"So how will you help me grow stronger," she inquired, taking a small blue vial out of her robe and bringing it up to her eye, gazing hungrily at it.

"Hey what's that?" Haru asked, pointing at the strange vial she was clenching. The emotion in her usually empty eyes unnerved him. He knew the ominous glowing blue container was the cause of her sudden change in attitude.

"This," she said, pulling it away from her face, "is what you'll be helping me with Haru Sarutobi. This is my source of power Haru-san," Haku opened the vial and inhaled the scent before closing it, wiping her face clear of any emotion once more.

Haru grimaced, this chick was crazy beautiful, but seriously had some problems. He could help his Naru-chan using his journal, but he wasn't too comfortable sharing it with her.

"Well what does that do to you?" He asked looking down at the ice-covered ground wondering just what the hell was up with her and ice.

"It's a medicine called Blue Shader that enhances the users' bloodline. It causes my Hyoton (Ice release) to be amplified, but I can't manage to control it, will you help me?" Haku explained, slipping the drug back in her sleeve, how it stayed put Haru didn't know, but was just glad her face was back to normal.

Haru sat down on the grass that wasn't laced in ice and frowned. He knew a couple of chakra control techniques that he could teach her, but doubted she didn't already know them.

"Oh yeah our leaf one."

Picking up a nearby fallen leaf he applied chakra to it, sticking it to his forehead.

Smiling, he handed her a leaf and told her to do the same by applying chakra. His smile widened, seeing her cutely frown at the leaf and apply chakra to it and place it on her head only for it to fall a second later. Getting up and sitting directly in front of her on the ice, he summoned forth his journal and flipped to a page titled, Chakra Leaf Concentration Technique.

"Might want to take your top off for this one Ice-chan," he joked, scratching his head. He soon found out that she didn't pick up on the joke.

XxLine BreakxX

Haku didn't know when the sun rose or when she had a grand total of Twenty-Seven leaves littered across her topless body. She felt the most in tune with her chakra than she ever has, all thanks to Haru.

Opening her eyes she widened them, seeing Haru covered head to toe in leaves, staring at her exposed chest. How was he able to get that many on him? She couldn't even count the number of leaves. It was time to see if his strange chakra control technique worked.

Reaching to her discarded shirt a few feet away, she dug in it retrieving her Blue Shader drug. Opening the vial, she inhaled it, gaining a deep pink hue on her face. Letting the pleasant aroma flow throughout her body before drinking the contents. With her heart rate increasing, she watched as one leaf fell after another until there were only nineteen left.

"Boobies," the twelve-year-old boy mumbled out seeing a leaf fall from her breast revealing her pink nipple. He barely had enough time to react to the girl tackling him slamming her lips on his.

What the hell was wrong with this chick, is what he would've said had he cared at the moment only finding the taste of her lips to be pleasant. Whatever that medicine was it sure did taste good.

-End-