Sculpting Tools

By Daniel Walker

Author's Notes: Momochi Zabuza, Haku, and the Hidden Village of the Mist are not my property.

Chapter 1

"Natose, you're going to be late!"

Slowly, Ipposhi Natose opened his eyes. Waking up was by far his most hated part of the day. The bed was so warm compared to the biting, cold snow of the Hidden Village of the Mist. It was on days like this that he wished he had been born in Konoha.

"Natose, I'm not going to tell you again!"

I'll bet. "I'm up!" he called back to his mother. Mumbling incoherently, he grudgingly pulled the covers away and set his bare feet on the cold floor. He yawned and wondered whether it would be worth it to try and get an extra ten minutes of sleep. Then it hit him. Today he was going to be put into a genin team. Today was the day that he started his journey as a ninja. Instantly waking up, he threw on his clothes, secured his forehead protector, and grabbed his weapons. He then opened his window and started roof hopping towards the academy.

Exhausted, Natose walked into the building. Crap, no one's here! The teams must have been already decided. He looked around wildly, hoping to find someone who could help him.

"Well, well. Look who decided to show up."

Natose whirled around to find the source of the voice. He almost soiled himself when he saw to whom it belonged. Standing in front of him was none other than the infamous jounin, Momochi "Kijin" Zabuza. Not coming from a ninja family, Natose had only heard of this man by rumors on the street. However, what he heard wasn't encouraging. Back when the test to become genin involved fights to the death between students, Zabuza had marked his place in Hidden Mist history by single-handedly killing over 100 students. After that, he had risen through the ranks with frightening speed to attain the rank of jounin at the age of seventeen. Although in the back of his mind Natose understood that he was fortunate to have such a capable instructor, the man had a terrifying presence about him, almost as if he was death made flesh. The near seven-foot sword strapped to his back didn't help either. Natose suddenly realized that he should speak. "I-I'm s-sorry, sensei," he stuttered.

Zabuza snorted. "I don't mind as long as you can show me that you're worth my time. You still have to pass my test. If you can't then it's back to the academy with you. Now follow me." With that, he walked out the doors and towards the nearby forest. Natose quickly followed.

It was then that Natose noticed the other two genin that accompanied Zabuza. One was a boy with dark blue denim shorts and a white t-shirt underneath an unzipped black jacket. He had shaggy black hair that was kept out of his eyes by his forehead protector. His eyes were actually a bit disturbing. He didn't seem to actually have pupils, at least not normal ones. In the center of his eyes weren't the normal circles with black centers, but shining, gold stars with blue centers. His expression was completely neutral. There was no emotion whatsoever. He's taking the cold assassin thing a bit too far. Natose recognized the boy as Takeo. The two of them were tied at the top of their class at the academy.

The other genin was a skinny boy with black hair down to his neck and a forehead protector above his eyes. He was wearing a blue t-shirt with black shorts. Natose didn't recognize him at all. Unlike the first genin, this one had a smile on his face. What's he so happy for? Doesn't he know who our sensei is?

Finally, they arrived at a clearing. Zabuza removed the zanbatou from his back and set it up against a tree. He sat cross-legged on the snow-covered grass and motioned for the genin to do the same. "Seeing as how we'll potentially be working together, why don't we introduce ourselves?" He pointed toward the stoic. "You start. State your name, hobbies, and goals."

The boy nodded. "My name is Kyojin Takeo. My hobbies include training with my father and reading. My goal is to become a ninja strong enough to serve my village."

Zabuza smiled. So the boy was the son of Kyojin Jiro. Kyojin-san was the captain of ANBU's assassination team and hence Zabuza's superior. If Takeo was anything like his father, he would prove to be very useful. Zabuza nodded and moved his gaze to Natose.

It took Natose a few seconds to figure out that he was the center of attention. Not wanting to annoy Zabuza any further, he spoke up. "Oh, sorry. My name is Ipposhi Natose. My main hobbies are jogging and swimming, that is when the lake isn't frozen. I'm the first member of my family to become a ninja, so my goal is to become the strongest ninja of my generation."

Great. A glory-seeking idealist. Just what I need. I guess I should wait to see what he can do before I judge. "Good. Determination will bring you far." Not without raw talent, it won't. You had better be able to pull your weight, kid.

"My name is Shirokawa Haku," the third genin said cheerfully. "I have no hobbies. I have no goals. I simply wish to serve Zabuza-san." Takeo and Natose's eyes narrowed at this. What a pathetic kiss-up, was their collective thought.

Zabuza apparently didn't share in their disgust. "Very good." He turned toward the other two. "What Haku said is absolutely right. Listen up and listen well, brats. Being a ninja means being a tool, plain and simple. You are expected to follow my orders at all times. That means no questions. In a mission, a moment's hesitation after receiving an order could result in the death of your entire team. Assuming that you pass my test, you three are my slaves and my weapons until either you get promoted to chuunin or I decide that you're not worth my time." Zabuza paused to gauge his students' reactions. Takeo was as impassive as ever. He's probably already heard this from his father. Natose, on the other hand, had a face full of shock. Heh. He's got a lot to learn.

"I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Momochi Zabuza. As a member of ANBU, my hobby is killing." Even Takeo's face blanched at this. "This shouldn't surprise you. I am shinobi. This is what I do and what you three will be doing if you manage to become real ninja." Natose was about to protest that he was a real ninja until he was silenced by Zabuza's glare. "For the moment, I have no goals. Like Haku, I simply serve my superiors." Zabuza stood up. The genin followed suit. "Well, how about that test?" he asked rhetorically. "Sometimes you aren't always the assassin. You will encounter situations where you are the hunted. The purpose of this test is to evaluate your survival skills."

None of the genin said a word. Natose was close to sweating bullets. He can't be suggesting what I think he is, can he?

Confirming his fears, the fearsome jounin gave the most evil smirk that they had every seen. "Here is the test. You will be given ten minutes. If all of you are still conscious after that time, you pass. However, if I knock out a single team member, you all fail and will be sent back to the academy." Zabuza waited for a few moments for the information to sink in. Giving a contented sigh, Zabuza pressed a button on the digital watch he was wearing. "I suggest that you all start running." Without hesitating, the genin disappeared into the forest. Zabuza smiled. Not bad. Despite his fear, Natose has managed to keep his wits about him. The other two are also doing well, as expected.

Takeo and Natose quickly teamed up and hid in the trees. They knew that if they chose the ground they would have less maneuvering room. Also, the snow was deeper on the ground, making their tracks that much easier to detect. However, against a jounin, especially a member of ANBU, they were pretty sure that Zabuza would be able to find them no matter whey they hid.

Natose suddenly noticed something. "Hey, Takeo," he whispered. "Do you see Haku anywhere?"

Takeo gave a small scowl, the biggest expression of emotion the boy had shown all day. "No. It seems that he has gone off on his own."

Natose shared in his irritation. "That idiot. Doesn't he realize that we're being tested as a team? It's the only way we can hope to win against a jounin." Natose ran through all the jutsu that he knew, trying to find something that would increase their chances of "survival". He managed to select a few that might help, but they all seemed so pathetic against a jounin of Zabuza's caliber. Hopefully Takeo would know some helpful jutsu. However, from the look of Takeo's expression, the other genin didn't seem to be having better luck.

After a few minutes, Takeo's scowl came back. "That stupid Haku!" Somehow, Takeo was able to raise his voice while still remaining barely over a whisper. "Zabuza-sensei's probably taken him out already."

"Wrong," came a voice from behind them that chilled them to their bones. Without even bothering to turn around, they flung themselves off the branch just in time to avoid being skewered by shuriken.

"Well, at least he didn't bring his zanbatou with him," Natose pointed out.

"I don't need it against brats like you who can't even hide properly," Zabuza sneered. "The reason I wasn't here earlier was because I was looking for Haku. That kid actually managed to elude me. But, I guess his effort was in vain since you two are about to fail the test for him." With that, Zabuza lept at Takeo. The boy had been trying to form hand seals but Zabuza managed to grab him by the throat before he finished. "You lose, kid. I'm gonna squeeze the life right out of you."

"Takeo!" Natose yelled. All the fear drained out of him as his mind instantly focused on what he needed to do. The hand seals came to him quicker than he expected. He ended with "tori" and yelled out, "Yukikiba Shuriken no Jutsu!" What happened next wasn't what Zabuza was expecting. Natose grabbed some snow off of the branch that he was standing on and flung it at his sensei. However, what came out of the genin's hands wasn't snow, or at least it didn't look like snow. Natose had managed to perfectly form two shuriken from the soft substance.

That's a pretty impressive jutsu for someone his age. "Nice try, kid," Zabuza taunted as he lept above the projectiles, "but it would be faster to throw normal shuriken." It was then that the shurikens exploded, sending shards of sharp ice toward the jounin. Zabuza's eyes widened as he realized that he had no time to dodge. He winced in pain as one of the shards embedded itself in his shin. Nevertheless, he managed to land safely on his other leg.

I'm not done yet! thought Natose as he hurled two kunai at his sensei. He instantly realized his mistake as, after having caught one kunai with his hand, Zabuza used Takeo as a body shield to block the second. The weapon sank deep into Takeo's shoulder. However, instead of a cry of pain, Takeo's body exploded in a puff of smoke. When it cleared, Natose saw that Zabuza had his left hand around a thin log.

"Kawarimi no jutsu," Takeo said from behind Zabuza. Zabuza turned around to face his student, but found himself staring into the boy's piercing gaze, which seemed to glow a most radiant gold. "Here's one of mine. Nekome no jutsu."

Unfortunately, Zabuza made the mistake of blinking. As a result, he lost his focus and was instantly consumed by the genjutsu. The world started to spin and Takeo faded from view. But Zabuza was not a jounin for nothing. He quickly bit into his lip. The pain brought his mind back into focus and the spell was broken. He cursed his carelesness as he was just in time to side-step Natose who had tried to attack him from behind with a kunai. Zabuza was about to teach the boy a lesson when he felt two sharp pains coming from his elbow joints. It felt like he had been hit by senbon. "Haku."

Takeo looked up to see the third teammate standing on a higher branch, that simple smile still on his face. "So that's what you were doing," he murmured.

"Yes. I apologize for making you think that I had abandoned you, Takeo-kun, but it was necessary in order to successfully ambush Zabuza-san."

Zabuza's watch suddenly started beeping. "Well," the jounin sighed, "it looks like you three pass. Congratulations."

As Zabuza treated his new students to a celebratory meal at the nearest ramen restaurant, he smiled to himself. These three would be perfect for his plans. Not only were they all exceptionally gifted, but their skills were diverse enough to make a formidable fighting force. Takeo seemed like the type to rely on genjutsu and traps within traps. Haku, with the eyes of a hawk, made the ideal assassin. Even the "glory-seeking idealist" seemed to have a natural talent with manipulating chakra for ninjutsu. The only thing left to ensure was that they could be molded. If they could, then he would have the tools he needed.