Folded Hands, Chapter Three
Pairings: Zabuza/Haku, possibly others later
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When Haku returned home, he saw that his master's door was closed. He decided to leave his master alone for a while, and began to put the groceries away.
Haku heard the door to his master's room open then, finished what he was doing and turned to face his master with his arms at his sides.
Zabuza greeted him with a grunt from across the room, and said "Come outside when you're done. There's something I need to talk to you about."
Haku nodded and added, "Yes, master," before he returned to the groceries. Anxiety rose in his stomach. Did his master somehow know what he had done? Or, was this related to something else? He carefully laid the remaining money on the kitchen counter so as to not risk losing it. He had to make sure that he could at least past that test, if it had been a test. He then joined his master outside.
He saw that his master was waiting under a tree, on the path to a nearby forest.
"Follow me," he said gruffly. Haku nodded and walked after his master.
Zabuza was secretly happy that the kid had returned so quickly and hadn't seemed to have any trouble shopping by himself. He realized that the feeling was similar to teaching a dog a trick, and having the dog perform it over and over again. Of course, Haku's loyalty was much more importance than said dog's obedience.
The forest thickened, and Haku began to wonder where his master was leading him. He decided to try to not think about it—his ideas were probably more frightening than the reality.
The path lead to a small clearing, in the middle of which was a lake. Zabuza stopped at the shore and turned to his slave.
"Have you figured out what I do for a living?" He asked.
Haku hesitated before answering, "No, master."
"Did you wonder?"
"No, master."
Zabuza nodded. "I thought as much. I'm a wandering ninja. I kill people for a living."
Haku's eyes widened. He wondered for a moment if his master was telling this to reinforce the threats he had made earlier—was he about to punish him for something?
His master smiled when he saw the change in Haku's expression, and he continued. "I'm a water nin, which means that I know a variety of fighting techniques employing water." He studied Haku's face.
"Do you know why I'm telling you this?"
"No, master."
"Really?" Zabuza smiled. Nervousness began to build inside of Haku, and he would have thought of running from his master if he had not already learned the consequences of running or disobeying his past masters.
Zabuza continued when Haku didn't answer. "Do you know what I'm talking about?"
"N-no, master."
"Are you telling the truth?"
Haku looked uneasy. He was torn inside, that much was obvious to Zabuza, but he didn't know why.
Master wants me to…he wants to know if I…I don't want to be thrown away or punished for it. My other masters hated it when I…did those things…so I kept it a secret…
"Haku?"
His attention snapped back to his master, who was waiting for an answer. "Yes," he finally said.
"Yes, what?"
"Yes, master."
"No." Zabuza walked up to him, and Haku stared back at his master's cold, dark eyes and bandaged face. "Yes, are you telling the truth, or no, are you lying?"
Haku swallowed nervously. "I'm telling the truth, master. I don't know anything about that."
There was an overwhelming fear of being discovered, of being punished, and Zabuza saw it.
"Haku," he said firmly. He studied the kid's face, waiting for him to cave under the pressure of the interrogation. "You honestly don't know anything about water jutsu? About using water to kill people?"
His slave unconsciously took a step back, and said, "Y-yes, master. I don't know anything about water jutsu."
"How did you kill your last master?"
Haku lowered his eyes, the question as painful as his physical punishment could have been. "I…I drowned him."
"How?"
"I pushed his head under the water."
Zabuza laughed, and Haku lowered his head further. His master surprised him by pulling his left arm over his head, the sleeve of his new robe falling past his elbow, exposing his thin, pale arm.
"With this?" Zabuza asked, grinning under the bandages he wore. Haku did not attempt to pull his arm back, and Zabuza let go of him.
"Yes, master."
"Look at me."
Haku raised his eyes to see his master's face. The man's expression was somewhere between irritation and good humor. "Don't lie to me. You know how to use water jutsu, don't you?"
"No, master…I've never heard that 'j' word before." He said softly, afraid of speaking too loudly while his master looked directly at him.
"Jutsu? Well, then do you know how to make water move?"
"Like splashing?"
Zabuza caught Haku off-guard as he grabbed his arm again. Haku expected to be throw down, or beaten, or at least slapped for 'being clever'; instead, his master threw him towards the lake.
He landed on all fours about ten feet from the shore of the lake. He realized, as he caught himself, that the act of catching himself and of standing on water would prove to his master that he had lied to him, yes, but also that he had those horrible powers.
As he stood, he saw his master walk towards him across the surface of the lake.
He's a monster like me, Haku thought hopelessly. He waited, his arms at his sides and fighting the urge to cry.
Even with his powers, he knew that he was far, far weaker than his new master.
Zabuza put his hands on Haku's shoulders and held him in place.
"You lied to me," he said.
Haku nodded, and he averted his eyes. "Yes, master." He was pushed back roughly, and he nearly fell.
"Why did you lie to me?" his master growled at him. Before he gave him a chance to respond, he asked, "Do you like being difficult?"
"No, master."
"Then why?"
"I--" The words caught in his throat. He stared at his master, unable to tell him why exactly—what it right to lie for such a reason? He felt guilty, lying just so that he could avoid punishment or abandonment, but he wanted to remain where he was so badly…
Zabuza glared at him. "Can you do anything else, besides walking on water and making people slip on stage?"
This last question surprised Haku so much that he blurted out, "You saw that?" before remembering his place. His looked away.
This was it. He could get away with this.
"No, master. That's all I can do."
He didn't know how much time passed then, as his master stared at him, waiting for another confession. Haku's resolve cracked and crumbled and dissolved, but he kept his mouth shut.
His master shook his head. "I was hoping that you had skills that I could use for work. If not…" He turned on his heel.
Haku watched his new master's back in horror. He wanted me? He wanted me to help him…I could…
His resolve shattered.
"MASTER!" he shouted across the lake. When Zabuza ignored him, he ran across the surface of the water. "Master, I-I lied again. I can also do other things. I did use my power to kill my last ma--"
He was cut off as he master appeared behind him, his right hand closing around his throat and low voice growling in his ear, "Don't ever lie to me again."
Haku's heard pounded in his chest as he watched the man in front of him—who he thought was his master—melt away into a puddle of water. The man standing behind him was warm, and strong, and certainly not…whatever that had been.
"You got it?" Zabuza asked.
Haku slowly remembered how to speak. "Y-yes, master." he whispered. Zabuza released him, and asked, "What else, then?"
Haku turned to face his master. "What else, master?"
"What are your other powers?"
"I…can make the water move."
"Using seals and jutsu?"
Haku looked taken aback. "I don't know about those things." He quickly explained after he saw the confused look on his master's face. "I just make it move, like this."
He motioned to the water on his right side, and an amorphous water clone arose. Zabuza walked over to it and kicked it, to Haku's surprise. The water clone gave way and Haku quickly stammered, "I-I'm sorry," though he wasn't sure of what he had done.
Zabuza shrugged. "Not bad, for no training. It fell apart too easily, though, and the form was awful." A pause. "Anything else?"
Haku shook his head. "Everything else is just like that—all that I can do is make water move." He hung his head shamefully. "I killed my last master using that. I just tried to break his neck, but--"
"Don't want to hear about it," his master said, cutting him off. Haku nodded.
"From now on, this is your job. You'll learn whatever I can teach you about the ninja arts, as well as doing my cooking and cleaning." Haku nodded.
"Let's go home, then," he said.
Haku watched his master walk away again, and he wanted to thank the man, but he knew that silence was best.
Master…thank you, for not throwing me away.
