The Other Side
By: Linea
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, it would be chaos!
//...//= thoughts
Part 1 (Kiki, please don't kill me for this)
The sun rose over the gentle hil, hitting the man lying on the bottom slope of the hill. His eyes flickered open and he sat up, rubbing his head. His hand touched a headband, that had a metal plate attached to it, on which four small squiggles were imprinted.
"Zabuza," He murmured, "I remember that word." He loked around him, then stood.
"Yes," He smiled slightly, "I am starting to remember. I am Zabuza, the Demon. I fought Kakashi and then... then..." The smile faded "He killed Haku! Haku! Where is he?" Zabuza looked around frantically, but all he could see was green grass and blue sky. He slumped to the ground and sunk his head into his hands.
//I knew it! I knew I wouldn't end up with Haku, on the other side. I can never go to that place. He can.// Zabuza pulled his headband off and looked at it thoughtfully. The metal plate caught the light and flashed bright. Zabuza turned it back and forth, watching the flashes, until suddenly, it mirrored his face. Her looked at his reflection, staring into the eyes he saw there. They stared back, dark and hopeless, the eyes of a man who has seen too much and kept too little. As he studied his face, a great wave of melancholy washed over him, leaving tears pricking in his eyes.
*Flashback*
Everything was slowing down. He watched Kakashi's arm come towards him. He knew he was dead. He couldn't fight anymore, he didn't want to fight anymore.
But then....
Haku sped over, blocking Kakashi's blow. Then Kakashi's hand went right through his middle. Haku fell, crumpling in on himself.
"Zabuza-san," He whispered, then went still, dead. Zabuza was frozen. hecouldn't move at all, not even to blink.
*End flashback*
That was one of the worst moments in his life. Only his absolute self control prevented him from breaking down and sobbing. Even now, the memory required him to blink away some tears.
Haku... From the very first time Zabuza had seen the boy, he had been captivated. He may have been an outcast, but Haku was always so pure. Zabuza used him, like a tool, yet he wanted that! Haku's dream, his ambition was to help Zabuza acheive his dream! Haku had such complete faith, such complete trust in him, that he had to succeed. He knew that if he failed, he would rather kil himself than see the look on Haku's face.
Haku was every thing to him, everything. Without Haku, he would probably be dead by now, lying in a ditch in some strange town. Haku gave him a reason to live, to survive in the world that had cast him out. All it toook was one smile, one look and Zabuza could feel his spirits lift.
But... Now... He would never see that face, that smile, again. He would never feel that special warm feeling that he got when he was near Haku, never again.
"If I have to spend eternity without Haku, maybe this is Hell, even though it doesn't look like it," He muttered. He bit his lip so hard he tasted blood, but it couldn't stop the memories.
The first time he saw Haku. When he woke from the trance, with Haku sitting above him. Haku fighting Sasuke, throwing his needles with accuracy, sparing the boy on purpose. Zabuza had realized that Haku saw something in the other boy, something that marked them as similarly cursed outcasts.
Then, that other one. What was his name? Naruto? Yes! That's it! That kid, he jus wouldn't let up! He pried into Zabuza's min, asking him questions. Didn't he care? Didn't he worry about Haku? Didn't he feel anything? That kid kept asking and yelling at him until he just couldn't help it. He just started to cry. It was hard enough to keep from shouting, "Yes! Of course I care! Haku means everything to me!"
Why though? Why, though? Why did Naruto open all those wounds? It made him feel helpless, defenseless, weak. But it also made him feel good, knowing that maybe, just maybe, someone actually cared. That someone felt worried enough, angry enough to to yell at him, repremand him. Yes, it may seem strange, but after all, all he had recieved for years were impersonal orders. Until Naruto, no one other than Haku had seen him as a human. It had been so long, in fact, that if anyone other than Haku had cared for him, in his entire life, he had forgotton them.
Kakashi, a fellow ninja, of the same class as him. It had been a good fight, neither one really gaining the upper hand until Kakashi had used his dog attack. The man understood what it was like to be a ninja, a Shinobi. You were a tool in the hands of your village or your employer. If you got good enough, you became a user of the tools. However, you were never a human, with emptions, but a cold, impersonal machine.
That was all he was, until, one day, something had changed. One day he had woken up and glanced over at Haku, like usual. But.... What he had seen had taken his breath away and had stolen his heart in the same act. Haku, sleeping, looking so peaceful, almost like an angel. The blood on his shirt had spoiled the effect, but his face... So sad, but beautiful because of that sadness. If Zabuza had still had his heart, it would have been broken by the vision he beheld.
When Haku had died, Zabuza's heart had been broken all over again. His soul had shattered into a million peices, taking his world with it. He realized that, without Haku, he had nothing, no reason to live. So he killed Gato, as punishment for betraying him, and then he died. It was snowing, when he died, in the middle of summer. It was like nature was mourning for Haku, or remembering him. He had been born in a village where it snowed most of the year, where the pure whiteness had made everything look beautiful. Maybe the snow had covered their bodies, smoothed out the lines, made them look beautiful, lying there on the bridge.
Even now, when he was dead, Zabuza felt that pain, the pain of loss. The pain of having on you care about taken away. All he could do was sit and cry and ache. Haku was gone and he was unable to do anything about it. He gave in to his tears and let them roll down his cheeks as his sholders shook with sobs.
"Zabuza-san, why are you crying?"
TBC
Oooo! Evil cliffie. Don't worry, I'll update soon.
By: Linea
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. If I did, it would be chaos!
//...//= thoughts
Part 1 (Kiki, please don't kill me for this)
The sun rose over the gentle hil, hitting the man lying on the bottom slope of the hill. His eyes flickered open and he sat up, rubbing his head. His hand touched a headband, that had a metal plate attached to it, on which four small squiggles were imprinted.
"Zabuza," He murmured, "I remember that word." He loked around him, then stood.
"Yes," He smiled slightly, "I am starting to remember. I am Zabuza, the Demon. I fought Kakashi and then... then..." The smile faded "He killed Haku! Haku! Where is he?" Zabuza looked around frantically, but all he could see was green grass and blue sky. He slumped to the ground and sunk his head into his hands.
//I knew it! I knew I wouldn't end up with Haku, on the other side. I can never go to that place. He can.// Zabuza pulled his headband off and looked at it thoughtfully. The metal plate caught the light and flashed bright. Zabuza turned it back and forth, watching the flashes, until suddenly, it mirrored his face. Her looked at his reflection, staring into the eyes he saw there. They stared back, dark and hopeless, the eyes of a man who has seen too much and kept too little. As he studied his face, a great wave of melancholy washed over him, leaving tears pricking in his eyes.
*Flashback*
Everything was slowing down. He watched Kakashi's arm come towards him. He knew he was dead. He couldn't fight anymore, he didn't want to fight anymore.
But then....
Haku sped over, blocking Kakashi's blow. Then Kakashi's hand went right through his middle. Haku fell, crumpling in on himself.
"Zabuza-san," He whispered, then went still, dead. Zabuza was frozen. hecouldn't move at all, not even to blink.
*End flashback*
That was one of the worst moments in his life. Only his absolute self control prevented him from breaking down and sobbing. Even now, the memory required him to blink away some tears.
Haku... From the very first time Zabuza had seen the boy, he had been captivated. He may have been an outcast, but Haku was always so pure. Zabuza used him, like a tool, yet he wanted that! Haku's dream, his ambition was to help Zabuza acheive his dream! Haku had such complete faith, such complete trust in him, that he had to succeed. He knew that if he failed, he would rather kil himself than see the look on Haku's face.
Haku was every thing to him, everything. Without Haku, he would probably be dead by now, lying in a ditch in some strange town. Haku gave him a reason to live, to survive in the world that had cast him out. All it toook was one smile, one look and Zabuza could feel his spirits lift.
But... Now... He would never see that face, that smile, again. He would never feel that special warm feeling that he got when he was near Haku, never again.
"If I have to spend eternity without Haku, maybe this is Hell, even though it doesn't look like it," He muttered. He bit his lip so hard he tasted blood, but it couldn't stop the memories.
The first time he saw Haku. When he woke from the trance, with Haku sitting above him. Haku fighting Sasuke, throwing his needles with accuracy, sparing the boy on purpose. Zabuza had realized that Haku saw something in the other boy, something that marked them as similarly cursed outcasts.
Then, that other one. What was his name? Naruto? Yes! That's it! That kid, he jus wouldn't let up! He pried into Zabuza's min, asking him questions. Didn't he care? Didn't he worry about Haku? Didn't he feel anything? That kid kept asking and yelling at him until he just couldn't help it. He just started to cry. It was hard enough to keep from shouting, "Yes! Of course I care! Haku means everything to me!"
Why though? Why, though? Why did Naruto open all those wounds? It made him feel helpless, defenseless, weak. But it also made him feel good, knowing that maybe, just maybe, someone actually cared. That someone felt worried enough, angry enough to to yell at him, repremand him. Yes, it may seem strange, but after all, all he had recieved for years were impersonal orders. Until Naruto, no one other than Haku had seen him as a human. It had been so long, in fact, that if anyone other than Haku had cared for him, in his entire life, he had forgotton them.
Kakashi, a fellow ninja, of the same class as him. It had been a good fight, neither one really gaining the upper hand until Kakashi had used his dog attack. The man understood what it was like to be a ninja, a Shinobi. You were a tool in the hands of your village or your employer. If you got good enough, you became a user of the tools. However, you were never a human, with emptions, but a cold, impersonal machine.
That was all he was, until, one day, something had changed. One day he had woken up and glanced over at Haku, like usual. But.... What he had seen had taken his breath away and had stolen his heart in the same act. Haku, sleeping, looking so peaceful, almost like an angel. The blood on his shirt had spoiled the effect, but his face... So sad, but beautiful because of that sadness. If Zabuza had still had his heart, it would have been broken by the vision he beheld.
When Haku had died, Zabuza's heart had been broken all over again. His soul had shattered into a million peices, taking his world with it. He realized that, without Haku, he had nothing, no reason to live. So he killed Gato, as punishment for betraying him, and then he died. It was snowing, when he died, in the middle of summer. It was like nature was mourning for Haku, or remembering him. He had been born in a village where it snowed most of the year, where the pure whiteness had made everything look beautiful. Maybe the snow had covered their bodies, smoothed out the lines, made them look beautiful, lying there on the bridge.
Even now, when he was dead, Zabuza felt that pain, the pain of loss. The pain of having on you care about taken away. All he could do was sit and cry and ache. Haku was gone and he was unable to do anything about it. He gave in to his tears and let them roll down his cheeks as his sholders shook with sobs.
"Zabuza-san, why are you crying?"
TBC
Oooo! Evil cliffie. Don't worry, I'll update soon.