Folded Hands, Chapter Ten

Pairings: Zabuza/Haku, possibly others later

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Notes:

Thanks for 2500+ hits!

All of your reviews have been wonderful!

Also, three cheers for the cute new Naruto OP! I love this song!

And lastly, remember what I said about technology. They have whatever I say they have.

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Sasuke let Haku take a break from his training after about an hour. By that time, Haku was tired, bruised, and his lungs were burning. He glanced at Naruto for a moment before sitting down on the grass.

Sasuke sat down next to him. "Tired?"

Haku nodded. No words were needed.

He lied down on the grass and put his arms behind his head as he tried to slow his breathing and his heartbeat. He was a little ashamed that he could be so winded, when the fire-nin sitting next to him looked so unaffected, but it was to be expected.

Haku shut his eyes. He heard Sasuke move beside him, and he guessed that Sasuke was leaving so he could speak with Naruto. He didn't move, though, and instead silently dreaded Naruto's reaction to anything that Sasuke may have decided to say to him.

Suddenly, a dark shadow fell over him. Haku opened his eyes and saw his Master standing over him, next to his head. "How's the training?"

Haku sat up quickly, and faced his Master so that he was in a kneeling position. "J-just fine, just taking a break, Master," he said nervously. Zabuza nodded and knelt beside him.

"He did a number on you," he said, indicating a bruise on Haku's face. Sasuke had cursed quite heavily when he had accidentally dealt him that bruise.

Haku nodded. "I'll be more careful next time, Master," he said quietly, smiling gently.

"Good," Zabuza said before standing up. "It's time to go."

"What?" Haku asked, looking back at the other ninja. Kakashi had finished packing up the mission materials, and Sasuke was standing with his back to him, listening to something his teacher was saying. Haku caught Naruto's eye for a second as the scarred fire-nin gave him a sideways look, then turned away quickly.

"We're parting ways for now. All of the details are set, and it would be suspicious for the five of us to spend any more time together," Zabuza said.

"Oh," Haku said. His Master smiled under the bandages on his face.

He wants to say goodbye, huh?

"Come on. We're going to meet once more before the mission starts."

"Yes, master."

Haku gave Naruto's back one more glance, then turned to follow his Master back to their small house, keeping his eyes on his Master's back and not letting them look towards the fire-nin.

Obedience was expected.

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When they reached the clearing that the house was centered in, Zabuza put down his gear pack and turned to face his slave.

"Show me what you learned today," he said.

Haku was a little surprised, but he obeyed by dropping his own gear and tying back his hair.

Zabuza took a standing, passive stance, and said, "Just come at me. Try something. Don't worry about hurting me."

Haku couldn't help but laugh. "Of course I can't worry about hurting you," he said softly. He bit his lip after he said this…he was tired, and he knew that he was more likely to talk back in that state.

Luckily, his Master let it pass, like always.

Maybe he doesn't mind my attitude. Maybe, he doesn't even think that I'm disrespectful.

Haku prepared himself for his attack. He tried to remember everything that Sasuke had told him, but the information all flooded back to him so quickly, and it was difficult to sort out. In his nervousness, that day's training turned into a mix of garbled suggestions that only clouded his mind.

What should I do?

He swallowed nervously. His Master was waiting passively, staring at him with his usual relaxed expression.

Haku took a step forward. His body was weighed down with indecision. Walking, moving, breathing felt awkward and unnatural. What was he supposed to do to his Master's body? Punch? Kick? What was expected?

He stopped mid-step.

"It doesn't matter what you do, just try something," his Master said. Haku nodded nervously.

Just forget everything! Attack! Just run at him and try whatever seems right!

Haku closed his eyes, took a breath, and struck. He found himself on the ground four seconds later, and the air was forced out of his lungs.

"Master?..."

Zabuza chuckled. "I said don't worry about me getting hurt. I'm still going to hurt you."

Haku let that run through his head.

Hurt me? How much?

His body already ached from his training with Sasuke, and, without Sakura around to heal his wounds, he was limited to his usual stamina…which was very, very small. Haku knew that he was in no shape to train with his Master.

He pulled himself off the ground, dusted his clothing, and prepared himself to strike again. Zabuza nodded, then took his defensive stance again.

This time, he tried a kick. His master caught his leg and forced his upper body to drop to the ground, placing him in an uncomfortable position. He held him there for only a second before releasing him.

Haku pulled himself up again, and dusted off his clothing.

This was Haku's mistake.

As soon as his hands touched his robe, he felt his Master's hand strike his chest, knocking the wind out of him. He crumpled to the ground, trying desperately to breathe, and his Master knelt down by him.

"I didn't say that we were pausing, Haku."

Haku nodded, unable to speak as he fought for air.

"We're going to keep going until you get a sense for this. You have no experience in fist fights, and there won't always be water around for you to manipulate. The only way for you to learn how to fight, is to fight." Haku had caught his breath by then, and raised his face so that he was able to look straight at his master.

"There's no point in being kind when I'm training you. Kindness will only hurt you later. That black-haired kid shouldn't have been so easy on you." He grabbed Haku's arm then, and pulled him to his feet.

"I'm going to make sure that you won't die on this mission. I'm not going to save you if you get yourself into a dangerous situation. I need you to be able to save yourself."

Haku nodded.

"We're going to keep going until the sun sets." The sky was already streaked with red, orange, and violet, so Haku knew that that wouldn't be a very long period of time.

"Yes, master," he said softly.

Zabuza looked over his slave. He was bruised, and looked incredibly fragile. This young man had potential, though, even if none of his previous masters had been able to see it. He was equally glad that he had been able to find this slave and disappointed that no one had thought of training him when he was younger.

Haku drew a deep breath, closed his eyes, then exhaled. He opened his eyes to see that his Master had once again adopted a defensive stance and was waiting for his attack.

I'll try my hardest to please you, Master.

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Sunset found Haku lying on the ground, sweating, bruised worse than before, and utterly miserable. His master stood over him for a moment, then decided against offering him a hand in standing up.

"I'll make dinner. Come in when you can."

Haku watched his Master pick up both of their gear packs, and return to the house. He stayed where he was for a few minutes, trying to gather the strength to stand.

When he made his way into the house, he was greeted by the sight of his master slicing a block of beef from his last shopping trip into thin pieces. There goes the beef stew…

Zabuza motioned for him to sit on the couch when he saw him. "Just rest for the rest of tonight."

Haku nodded dumbly at the man who had so easily caused him bodily harm, and sat down on the couch. Without turning around, he tried to guess what his master was making.

It sounds like he's finished with the beef, and now he's chopping something…it smells like onion. And now, there's lime. He keeps going for the spices, too. Now, more chopping…probably more vegetables…

"Didn't you buy any cilantro?"

Haku nearly jumped. He ran the question through his mind for a second, then answered, "No, Master. I've never used that for cooking before."

Zabuza snorted. "Buy some next time."

Cilantro?

Not long after, his Master handed him a plate. The contents looked unfamiliar, even though Haku had bought them only a few days ago.

"Try it," his Master said.

Haku nodded, and took a bite as his Master turned away and walked to the table, where he began to eat. Haku was somewhat glad for this, because the second the food touched his tongue, he spat it out.

Spicy!

Haku looked over his shoulder at his Master, who was eating gracefully (or, more gracefully than a person who had spat out a mouthful of food).

Not only that, but…the bandages were off.

He stared at his Master for a few seconds before Zabuza said (without looking up), "Eat."

Haku turned around quickly, blushing. He hoped that his Master had mistaken his fascination with curiosity and not...well…

Zabuza's face was hard and strong, and very masculine. It seemed as though he hadn't shaved for a day or two, and the stubble combined with the strength of his face, the hardness of his eyes, his heavy browbones, and the lack of eyebrows gave Haku the impression that his Master was indeed very…tough, just as Naruto had thought.

Naruto.

"I don't hear any eating."

Haku nearly jumped, and realized that he might have been insulting his Master by not eating. He eyed the plate of food warily and softly asked, "May I have a glass of water?"

He heard his Master's chair scratch the tiles of the dining room floor, and his Master's heavy footsteps warned him that maybe he shouldn't have asked for that, but he heard the refrigerator door open, then he heard a glass being set down on the counter. After a pouring sound, the refrigerator was slammed shut. His Master's footsteps found their way to the back of the couch, and Haku turned to see his Master holding a glass of milk.

He took it, and, before he could ask, Zabuza said, "Just in case the food is too hot. Water will just make it worse."

Haku nodded, and said, "Thank you, Master." Zabuza left him once again for the solitude of the dining room table, leaving Haku to tackle the challenge of whatever it was that his Master had cooked for him.

He only remembered Naruto when his Master took the plate from him. He felt guilty as his heart fluttered when he saw his Master's uncovered face again.

I'm acting just like the kind of easily-taken-advantage-of-slave that Naruto probably thinks that I am.

"I'm going to clean up here first," Zabuza said from the kitchen as he finished washing the dishes. "Take a bath and go to bed soon. We're going to train again tomorrow, or at least for as long as your body will permit."

Haku rose and said, "Yes, Master." He watched his Master for a moment, then left the living room.

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About an hour before, Naruto had sat down to dinner with Sasuke and Kakashi. He was still pissed off, and Sasuke had taken to ignoring him.

Kakashi looked over the restaurant menu. "It's like they have a different language here," he said in a bored voice.

"This is a stupid country," Naruto said. "They need to make it like the Fire Country."

"How's that?" Kakashi asked, still bored. Sasuke picked up a menu and began to peruse it.

"There shouldn't be any slavery, for one thing."

"Would you like it if Sakura was your slave, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, hiding his face behind a menu.

"WHAT? You sick old man!" Naruto shouted, his face red. "You've been reading too many perverted books!"

"Naruto!" Sasuke shushed him, glaring at him. "Keep it down! This is a public place!" He tried to hide behind his menu, just like his teacher.

Naruto stared at the floor. "Not every is sick and perverted like you, Master Kakashi," he said.

"But you imagined it, didn't you?" Kakashi said, lowering his menu to smirk at Naruto (although only his eyes were visible above his navy half-mask).

He blushed. "Well, it's hard not to imagine it…but PERVERTED stuff aside, no one should be enslaved."

"I think this country is a little backwards, too," Sasuke said under his breath as the waitress stopped at their table.

"Hi! What would you gentlemen like to drink?" she asked in a soft voice.

Kakashi's eyes scanned the menu for two seconds, then he put his menu down. "We're not from around here, so how about you just give us the most popular drinks and dishes from this place?"

The waitress was a little surprised, but she nodded. "You three…are from where?"

"Oh, just a little place in the middle of nowhere," Kakashi said. He smiled at the waitress, then took his students' menus away and handed them to the waitress. She walked away.

"You know she's going to give us the most expensive stuff," Sasuke said in a low voice.

His teacher shrugged. "I'll get Godaime to pay me back."

Naruto's eyes followed the waitress as she walked towards the kitchen. She stopped to talk to a burly man who was sitting by himself in a corner. The man glanced in Naruto's direction for a moment, and the waitress returned to the kitchen.

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Kakashi stared at his students' plates. Naruto, even in his unhappy state, had been able to put away the large steak he'd received and had even stolen some of his teacher's food. Sasuke pushed around his remaining fried tofu pieces with his spoon.

"Why did I get rabbit food?" he asked miserably.

"The waitress must have thought you looked like a vegetarian," Naruto said quickly.

Sasuke scowled. "What does that mean?"

To keep his students from getting into a "You look gay" and "You look stupid" kind of fight, which was frequent when Naruto and Sasuke were forced to spend time together in enclosed spaces, Kakashi said, "Well, I think it's time to go back. We don't want it to get dark before we go home."

Naruto remembered what he'd seen earlier, and said, "We should all go to the bathroom before we go," in a quiet voice.

Sasuke gave him a strange look. "That really sounds weird, somehow."

Kakashi, who had also caught the exchange, nodded. "Come on, Sasuke. Naruto had a good idea. Didn't your mom always tell you to go to the restroom before you left the house?"

Now Sasuke knew that something was happening. He nodded.

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Naruto stretched his arms as he left the restaurant. "Hey, Master Kakashi, that place was great!"

"Pipe down, you mother-fucking-goddamned dumbass," Sasuke said. He scowled heavily.

"I'm so boring. I'm so boring. I'm so boring, and I only have this book to read," Kakashi said as he read Come Come Paradise.

Sasuke said, "I wish something dangerous would happen. I'm so godawful fucking goddamned bored in this hellhole of a country."

"Well, we'll be out soon!" Naruto said cheerfully.

The burly man from before suddenly appeared behind Sasuke as he stepped over a water puddle, and he twisted one of Sasuke's wrists behind his head as he held a knife to his throat.

Sasuke said, "Look, I'm such a goddamned mother-fucking retard, that I got caught by this not-so-strong water-nin. What a girl I am."

The burly ninja gave Sasuke a strange look, and barked at Kakashi, "I have one of your students, foreign ninja. I know why you're here."

Kakashi looked surprised. "You have caught Sasuke," he said over the top of his book.

Naruto laughed. "Pissy-boy got caught!"

The ninja laughed, too. "Yes, I guess he did. Now, if you want your student back, just follow me."

Kakashi sighed. "If I follow you, you'll just lead me to an ambush. What to do…" He said in a bored voice. "Well, if you kill Sasuke, I'll still have Naruto, my all-time best student."

Naruto gasped. "I AM your all-time best student, Master Kakashi, but what about poor Sasuke? He'll die!"

"No matter."

The water-nin stared at both of them. "Don't…don't you care about this kid?"

Kakashi shrugged. "He's just an arrogant girly boy."

Naruto shook his head. "We MUST save Sasuke!" He gave Sasuke a thumbs-up, 'Good Guy' pose. "Don't worry, I'll save you, even if Master Kakashi won't because you suck!"

Sasuke began to cry. "Please save me, Naruto! I suck so bad, and I need super-strong Naruto to save me!"

The water-nin heard loud grunts and shouts behind him. The men he'd had waiting for the ambush were that way…what were they doing?

The grunts stopped, and he saw, with no small amount of surprise, that the very same foreign ninja he was holding a knife to was walking towards him from the ambush area.

"Naruto, drop that horrible clone technique," he said disdainfully. The blonde ninja smiled and said, "Dispell!"

The teacher and the hostage disappeared in a poof of smoke, leaving the water-nin with his hands empty. Sasuke and Naruto stood on either side of him.

"Where are my men?" he shouted at Sasuke.

"Where you left them." Sasuke walked around the man to where Naruto was standing, and hit him on the head.

"What was that for!" Naruto shouted.

"Insulting me everytime you make one of your clones look like me."

The water-nin stared at the two fire-nin for a moment before laughing. "How foolish of you to waste your precious time here. I've already sent my fastest man to alert Gatou that three foreign ninja have come after him."

Naruto smirked. "Well, Master Kakashi went after him, so I don't think we need to worry."

"This the guy you were talking about?" Kakashi asked as he dropped down from a tree. A man was slung over his shoulder.

The water-nin stood frozen. "You…"

Kakashi dropped the incapacitated man and said, "Sasuke, do it neatly."

Sasuke nodded, and the last thing that the water ninja saw was a blur of navy and black against the red-stained sunset.

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Sakura painted her nails in front of the vanity of her new 'room'. The head of the ring had introduced her to a woman named 'Mist', who had shown Sakura the ropes, so to say.

She shuddered in disgust. The women had actually made her watch prostitutes in the act! Her only solace during those times had been imagining that the two people were Chouji and Ino…that had been pretty funny…

Sakura smiled as she began to blow on her nails to dry them. I'm supposed to start work tomorrow. That means that there will be two days during which I'll have to 'get by' with prostitute work.

Luckily, Naruto had pulled Sakura to the side the night before to show her how to use the Shadow Clone Replication Technique. Naruto really could be protective, so much that it was sweet.

Sasuke had also pulled her to the side early that morning, and had told her that they could make Naruto prove his acting skills by transforming into a girl and taking Sakura's place. She had laughed a little, and joked that the technique would be dispelled at the moment of penetration….and then Sasuke's face had gone red and he'd said that he hadn't thought that far.

She smiled. Sasuke could be sweet and protective, too.

It was a little embarrassing that Haku knew that she would have to play a prostitute, but she didn't mind too much. Haku was such a nice guy, and she knew that he probably wouldn't make any jokes.

More moans from next door. Sakura felt sick for a second.

Okay, Chouji and Ino, Chouji and Ino…

She giggled. Now THAT was funny enough to get rid of her night-before jitters.

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