Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter 6 - Journey to the Land of Waves: Part 2 - The Assassin of the Mist
The bridge that would connect the Land of Waves to the mainland had only been a dream when Amaya had visited the tiny nation. But as she peered through the fog, she saw that dream had been made reality.
She returned her attention back to Tazuna as he explained why he'd tricked them. Gato was trying to take over the small county and the bridge-builder stood in his way. "Gato moved in a year ago, you say. I must have left right before he arrived. Too bad. I would've taken him out for free."
Sakura glanced at her sensei. "You came here, Amaya-sensei? Why?"
"I came in search of a healer for a friend of mine."
"Did you find them?" Naruto asked quietly, for once heeding his scolding.
Amaya nodded. "Yes, though not here, but I haven't had the chance to let my friend know."
Naruto was about to ask another question, but with the fog clearing and the dock in sight, he shifted into a more observant mode. Amaya was rather impressed; the blond Genin actually seemed to be taking this seriously. Disembarking, the group began the several-miles walk to Tazuna's home.
Naruto's seriousness quickly devolved into his usual hyper-activity. He exaggeratedly scanned the trees for enemies, throwing kunai at any potential threat. Amaya winced with each throw; the idiot was going to hurt someone.
"Naruto," Kakashi scolded once the shock of the blond's stupidity had worn off, "those are dangerous."
"Stop trying to scare me, you scruffy little dwarf!" Tazuna yelled.
The Genin resumed his search for enemies. Amaya and Kakashi noticed the slight scuffling sound at the same time. Naruto, sensing their alertness, turned and threw a kunai in the direction the Jonin glanced. Sakura hit her teammate and told him to quit acting like a dumb kid. Kakashi waded through the bushes to find Naruto's kunai embedded in a tree an inch above a terrified rabbit. While the blond hugged the rabbit and apologized profusely, Kakashi glanced back at Amaya. He knew she felt it too: a strong chakra, approaching fast.
"Look out!" Kakashi yelled as a giant sword swept toward Tazuna.
Everyone hit the dirt and the blade passed harmlessly above them, embedding itself in a tree. A moment later, a ninja appeared, balancing on the hilt. A tall and muscular man with spikey, short, black hair glared down over his shoulder at the group. Most of his face was covered in bandages, leaving only his brown eyes visible and he wore only gray, loosely fitting pants and camouflaged arm and leg warmers. Amaya recognized a Kiri nin when she saw one. The Kiri headband made identifying the new threat even easier. Lastly, the giant sword in the tree sealed his identity. Zabuza Momochi. The Demon of the Hidden Mist. From the subtle shift in Kakashi's stance, she knew he'd figured it out too.
"Well, well," Kakashi said, taking a few steps forward to place himself more squarely between the new threat and the Genin and Tazuna, "if it isn't Zabuza Momochi, rogue ninja from the village Hidden in the Mist."
Amaya glanced at Naruto who stood beside her and caught him by the arm before he could charge the Kiri nin. "Don't get in the way."
"But – "
"He's not like those other ninja. He's in a whole other league," the Copy-nin said, cutting off Naruto's protest. Kakashi glanced back at Amaya and she knew to stay and protect the Genin and Tazuna. He could handle this on his own. He reached up and straightened his hitai-ate, revealing his Sharingan.
"Kakashi of the Sharingan eye. Did I get that right? And who might you be?" Zabuza turned a little to get a better look at Amaya and her tattoos.
"No one in particular," she said coolly. No need to have herself be a target. Things might get out of hand and she might need to step in.
"Then stay out of my way if you want to live." The missing-nin returned his attention to the other Jonin. "It's too bad, huh. But you'll have to hand over the old man."
Amaya saw confusion flicker among the Genin at the mention of the Sharingan. She realized that, save Sasuke, they didn't know about the kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan and Sasuke's unease stemmed from another point altogether. She needed Team 7 focused. "Now, quick. Manji formation. Protect the bridge-builder. And stay out of this fight. We've taught you teamwork and now it's time to use it." They ignored her command for a moment, all three too interested in Kakashi's eye. "Do as I say!"
With that, the trio took up positions around Tazuna and Amaya filled in the hole at the bridge-builder's back. Mist began to pour in around the group and the auburn-haired Jonin stiffened. As the mist wrapped around them, Amaya felt another presence closing in on the battlefield. The ninja wasn't as strong as Zabuza but was no less ready to kill. Kakashi glanced back at her; she knew he'd noticed too.
A few hand seals later and Amaya shunshined away, leaving a clone in her place. Pinpointing the enemy, she easily intercepted the shinobi's path but was surprised to find a Kiri hunter-nin instead of the enemy she was expecting. But as she landed on a branch in front of him, two senbon flew at her. Amaya dodged aside without a moment to spare; if those needles had made contact, she'd be dead. She studied the ninja, wary of another attack.
He wore the standard Kirigakure pinstriped outfit which stopped at his knees. Over this was a green haori with white trimmings, and around his waist a brown sash with a fringed trail wrapped around his waist twice. Light-brown platoon sandals with straps in the same color as his kimono adorned his feet and blue-green nail polish decorated his fingernails and toenails. His long, black hair was gathered in a white bun holder, two locks of loose hair framed his face, and the ends were bound with metal hair cuffs. A white hunter-nin mask with thin, curved eye-holes and a red wavy design in place of the mouth, as well as the Kirigakure symbol etched in the top, hid his face from view. He watched her warily from behind his mask, ready to strike now and ask questions later at the first sign of return aggression.
"You're not really a hunter-nin, are you?" Amaya asked. She knew this boy wouldn't attack her if he was really after Zabuza. A hunter-nin wouldn't let anyone stop him, but he also wouldn't act outside his mission and kill without need.
"No." The boy shifted the kunai she hadn't seen him draw into a more secure grip. She instinctively tensed but forced herself to relax, to smile, to hold up her hands to show she held no weapon.
"I've no intention of fighting you. You're with Zabuza then?" When the boy nodded, Amaya continued, "Why are you working for Gato?"
"Don't move," Kakashi said, holding a kunai to his opponent's throat. "You're finished."
Zabuza laughed darkly. "Finished. You really don't get it, do you? Your technique is nothing but a crass imitation. I'll never be defeated by a mere copy-cat ninja like you." The nukenin continued to chuckle. "You are full of surprises, though. Nice try, but I'm not that easy to fool."
Zabuza's clone fell apart as he appeared behind Kakashi and slashed at him. The silver-haired Jonin dodged but was too slow to avoid being kicked. He went soaring through the air, Zabuza chasing after to finish him off, but he tossed makibishi spikes right before entering the water, causing his pursuer to skid to a stop.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto yelled.
The shinobi working with Zabuza didn't answer right away, wondering why this tattooed stranger was asking all these questions. He didn't really know why he was telling her all this either, but something told him he could trust her. He hadn't made it this far as a shinobi without trusting his instincts. "We need the money to help Terumi-sama and the rebellion."
The auburn-haired Jonin thought for a moment. She'd heard that name when she stayed in Mist. Mei Terumi wanted to end the fourth Mizukage's reign. Amaya paused in thought, an idea forming. "If it's money you're after, then why not seek out Konoha's help? I know Mist and Leaf've never been on the greatest of terms, but we hate Yagura's rule as much as you do. I can tell your story to the Hokage and I know he'll listen. All I ask in return is that you leave the bridge-builder be and forget your contract with Gato."
The boy was shocked. No one had ever offered help. He frowned behind his mask, unsure of her intentions, but saw that she meant every word. He felt Zabuza's chakra weakening and knew he'd have to leave but thanked the strange ninja for her kindness. Before he left, he gave her his name: Haku.
Haku shunshined away and Amaya was left alone. She wasn't sure if her words would make a difference, but if she could avoid further bloodshed, she'd try anything. The Jonin returned to the battlefield in time to see Haku carry the corpse of his master away. Appearing beside Kakashi, she caught him as he fell.
"Is he all right, Amaya-sensei?" Sakura asked nervously.
"He needs rest. Tazuna, lead the way," she said as she hoisted the unconscious copy nin onto her back. The weary group set out. She was pleased to hear of the Genin's teamwork and that, for the most part, they hadn't reacted badly to their first real fight. As they walked, Amaya thought that maybe, just maybe, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were going to be okay.
