Of Ice and Mist

Disclaimer: See first chapter.

Chapter Two: Back to the beginning

He could hear voices. They were faint, almost to the point of being indiscernible, but he could still make out several of the words. He heard someone mention a kuionichi, and he wondered what had happened to the girl. He could hear another voice talking about someone wandering in past the guards, meaning they were probably talking about him this time. He knew he needed to open his eyes, to explain himself to whoever had found him, but he couldn't seem to bring his strength to him enough to do so. He was still drained, he didn't even have the strength to defend himself if worse came to worse. Haku knew he was hurt pretty badly and silently wondered if maybe he'd been having a horrible dream and that he'd wake up and his sensei would be next to him, slightly concerned and a little pissed off with his injuries but otherwise fine. Anything would be preferable to the pain he was in.

Haku finally realized that he could speak and gathered his strength around that one fact to say something to the people in the room, though he couldn't even open his eyes to see them. "Sensei? Are you there?"

The sound of footsteps echoed near him in the room and a strong, slightly familiar voice spoke up next to him. "Are you a genin? What's your name? What's the name of your sensei so we can get in contact with him?"

A sharp smacking sound filled the room for a moment. "Don't confuse the poor girl, Naruto! She's been through enough as it is."

Haku found that he now had the strength to open his eyes at last. Dark eyes opened and immediately took in the two people in the room. One had wild blond hair and sharply focused blue eyes. The other, a medic nin, had bright pink hair and pale green eyes. He instantly recognized them. They were older, but they were still the same. Naruto Uzamaki and Sakura Haruno, two of the three genin that had been there the day he'd died.

"N-naruto-san?" He asked, completely unsure of the much older man in front of him.

"How'd you know my name, miss?" He asked, obviously confused by the barely audible voice Haku spoke to him in.

"You aren't safe here, Haku. You have to get up. They'll kill you if they find out who you are. Get out of there now, while you still have the chance." Came a sharp, slightly irritated command from somewhere near him.

Haku didn't question the voice that guided him; he'd never question his sensei's teachings. He'd lived too long by the words that the jounin had forced into his head since the first day they'd met. If one of Zabuza's most basic lessons was setting off his flight or fight response, then he wouldn't ignore the feeling or the words. He forced himself to get out of the bed and staggeringly bolted for the door.

"Hey there, little one, where do you think you're going?" Came the confused and slightly annoyed voice of the older version of Naruto.

Haku didn't listen, just went straight for the door, and ran as fast as he could force his near exhausted body to go. His speed was the one thing he prided in himself over everything else. He'd never had much in the way of physical power like his sensei, so he'd made up for it with speed, cunning, and several-advanced jutsu.

'I'm too weak to fight. Have to run. Don't stop don't look back. Just run. Don't stop, don't stop don't-' His mental ranting stopped as he plowed into another person. This person grabbed him by the arms and held him tightly so that he wouldn't topple over. His strength gave out then. Only the power radiating from the man in front of him and a pair of steadying hands kept him on his feet. Haku barely had the chance to look into a pair of dark red eyes before Naruto caught up with him.

"Hey you caught her! Thanks a lot there, man. She's an outsider, wandered in right past the ninja at the gates."

"He."

"Wha?"

"I said he, dobe. You said she, and this one's a male."

"No way, you're kidding me."

"Hn."

Haku allowed himself to fall forward against the red eyed shinobi in front of him. At least he didn't have to run anymore. He wasn't too sure how safe he was with this new ninja, but at least this one could tell the difference between a girl and a boy. He could feel the body of the other man stiffen before the hands at his arms shifted to his waist and he was switched up into the person's arms. "Our allies are becoming lax in their duties. He's ready to pass out, Naruto."

"Yeah, I know. He collapsed in front of me near the training grounds a few days ago, so I brought him to Sakura-chan to get him fixed up. Figured he was a genin."

The news of how long he was out shook Haku's entire body. He'd been at their mercy for how long? That was a disturbing thought by itself, but even more was the increasing feeling he was getting that he wasn't safe here. His instincts had never failed him before. He knew better than to ignore them. If his instincts told him that he still wasn't safe, then he probably wasn't. He forced himself to focus on what was going on. He couldn't fight now, but he could make sure he knew what was going on.

The as of yet unnamed young man snorted loudly. "Not likely. He's too old to be a genin. Chuunin possibly, maybe even a jounin."

"A.N.B.U. actually."

Red eyes looked down to him. "Excuse me?"

"I'm an anbu, a tracker ninja. My partner and I were on a mission in the Mist country and we met with resistance. I don't know where he is, but I remember taking a hit for him and then nothing but pain. Somehow, I ended up here." Haku spoke softly, only leaving out a few choice points of the story that would have exposed him, and ultimately killed him.

"Sasuke Uchiha, you put those away right now!" Came a sharp, clearly feminine voice from somewhere beyond his sight.

The red eyes above him faded to dark black. "Sorry. Just got back from a mission, guess I forgot. My fault, but I don't think he really cared too much, Sakura."

"He?" Sakura asked, sounding just as confused as Naruto had a few minutes ago.

"I'll explain it later. This person that I'm currently carrying is an anbu, possibly from the Village Hidden in the Mist."

"But, Sasuke, we're at war with Hidden Mist."

"I know."

"He doesn't have any identifying marks on him."

Sasuke shifted Haku slightly in his arms. "Left arm, near the shoulder. He's marked as an anbu."

"How do you-"

"Short sleeves. Saw it when I picked him up."

"Oh."

"He's a long way from home then, isn't he?" Naruto asked, finally pushing himself back into the conversation.

"Yeah, he is. There's no telling why he's here, or how he got past the guards, especially since he has little to no chakra left in his body."

Haku's mind finally caught up with him. Somehow, he'd managed to wander straight into the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Moreover, he'd managed to land himself with the three people most likely to remember who he was. These three were all likely jounin by now, and all of them trained by one of the most notorious shinobi that ever lived. Kakashi Hatake was no fool. He'd have trained them very well. Even the sole kuionichi on his team was likely to have more than a few tricks up her sleeve.

"I….I seek sanctuary." He spoke the words carefully; knowing that he littlest slip of the tongue would see his head rolled onto the floor. These three were dangerous, the two men more so than the woman, but still dangerous as a team or as an individual. "I am no longer under the command of the Mist Country. I am a missing nin, a rouge ninja. My partner is likely dead, and I have no gear and no headband to mark me for what I am."

"You asked first for your sensei when you woke up. What is the name of your sensei? And is he also your partner?" Sakura asked, all business now that they knew for sure that Haku was from Hidden Mist.

"A good shinobi never reveals the name of his or her partner to the enemy if they are captured." Haku quoted his sensei word for word, knowing the lesson applied to the situation.

"Fair enough, but we still need to know if we should be looking for one body or two."

"One, my sensei was also my partner as an anbu. You're also not likely to find his body. We were separated far away from here." Haku once again gave forth the information after pulling out any identifying points.

"Right…So there's not likely to be a vengeful anbu coming here looking for you then."

"He was only a jounin."

"Hmm? Now that is interesting. Usually, two anbu are set as partners for high ranked missions. Its unusual for a jounin to be sent along side an anbu." Sasuke said, his even voice coming from just over Haku's head.

Sakura nodded, now within Haku's field of vision. "That's true, but if they really were a set of partners then it's likely that he just surpassed his sensei. Am I right?"

"My sensei never much cared what level they called him. He wasn't much for the levels of shinobi. As long as he was strong enough to destroy our enemies, nothing else mattered."

"Hey, uh…. I hate to interrupt this question and answer session, but… Well, what's his name?" Naruto asked from where he stood on the other side of Sakura.

Now three pairs of eyes landed on the ailing anbu. He had been avoiding giving out his name, a blatant refusal to recognize a known custom among all shinobi. When entering another village, it was customary to give ones own name before being allowed to know the names of those around you. Haku already knew their names, but he had not given his own.

"Well? What do you call yourself?" Sasuke asked him directly, issuing the greeting required between shinobi.

A different voice kept him from having to answer. "I'd think it was pretty obvious who he was. It's been a few years, but I'd recognize that one anywhere. Strange to see you here, since you're supposed to have died over five years ago."

"Sensei?" Naruto asked.

"He's only noted in the bingo book as being one of the youngest shinobi to reach the position of A.N.B.U. The kid you're carrying right now, Sasuke, is Haku. Age fourteen, anbu from the Village Hidden in the Mist. He's the partner of Zabuza Mamochi. Counted as dead as of team 7's first official mission."

That's it.

Hope I kept everyone in character.

Sorry I took so long, but college has been keeping me really busy lately.

As for why Sasuke is in the village…Well, for the sake of my plot I'm going to say that he did leave with Orochimaru after the chuunin exams, but that he came back to the village a year later and was allowed to return as a chuunin. If that doesn't make any sense then I'm sorry, but that's my story and I'm keeping it.