Ugh, I'm so sorry this chapter took so long. Also, this chapter is pretty short. I'm having troubles writing this story.
Anyway thank you for all the reviews. They make me very happy, and I'm glad you all are enjoying this.
For those of you looking forward to Zabuza/Haku, I'm afraid it will be a while before that couple comes along.
As always, I don't own Naruto or any of its characters or themes.
Fanfic time! UAFAF!
Hasn't Everyone Wanted to Catch Snow on His Tongue?
Chapter Five: Plans and Searches
The forest was calm, a quiet blanket of tranquility settled over it. The animals, though still carrying on as usual, hunting each other and such, were undisturbed, happy enough to be left to their own devices. Yes, all was well.
Until a little dark haired teenager decided to rampage through, destroying whatever peace the happy woodland creatures had been experiencing. Said teenager was looking quite ruffled, his arms folded over his chest and a glare fixed onto his face.
Haku was not happy. In fact, he was more than just unhappy; he was downright disgruntled, close to furious even! Now, Haku was known, by those that actually got very close to him, to have a very long fuse that not even the most annoying people could set off, but somehow that fuse was gone, leaving the young shinobi in a state of close-to-homicidal rage.
How could he have done that! And with that… that snake-thing, of all the people he could've kissed! Ugh, it was disgusting! Just thinking about what had happened almost half an hour ago made Haku shiver, hopefully with disdain.
Haku just couldn't get his mind off of what had happened. What had he been thinking? Had he been thinking at all? Maybe he could pass it off as just his overworking teenage hormones. He nodded to himself, agreeing that this was the only logical explanation for the sudden gravitation of his lips to Orochimaru's.
Suddenly, the shinobi stopped in his tracks, eyes widening with horror as a new, and truly frightening thought came upon him.
"Just… just how old is that guy anyway!" Haku gasped out, feeling as though he was going to be sick. Ew. Simply disgusting. The man had to be at least twice his age, probably more.
Haku leaned his head down, closing his eyes as he brought a hand up to rest against his forehead. This day, which hadn't started out very well, was just growing worse and worse as each minute passed. He almost expected something even more intolerable to happen at any moment.
As he stood silent, attempting to calm himself down, Haku wondered if what he was doing would really help him. Instead of going to Zabuza, he was going to someone he'd met years ago, who probably didn't even remember him. Was the walk worth it, if he was just turned away by someone who didn't recognize him?
"It's worth a chance, I suppose," he muttered to himself, allowing his hand to drop back down to his side as he began to walk again. "Even if he doesn't remember me, we probably need supplies from the stores anyway."
While Haku was slowly recovering from the 'near death' experience of earlier, Orochimaru was slowly becoming as annoyed as Haku had been when he started out on his walk.
The snake tamer had been following Haku, feeling particularly proud of the fact that he'd been able to ruffle the little shinobi's feathers so thoroughly. But just as he was really getting into that good, satisfied feeling, he'd overheard the boy talking to himself.
About his age.
Now, Orochimaru wasn't so very happy; in fact, his left eye was twitching just slightly. His wounded pride ordered a blood sacrifice, but he reigned in those urges. He was still hoping to have some fun with this kid. Besides, it was a good way to waste time until he had to go back to his hidden village…
And just as suddenly as Haku had stopped earlier, Orochimaru's bad mood lifted. An idea had just sprung into his head; an idea that, he was sure, would bring him at least a little piece of satisfaction, and would definitely keep his boredom at bay when he went back home.
Things were looking up.
Zabuza sat in his favorite chair, the giant sword he had become famous for laid out carefully on the ground at his feet, gleaming in the shaded sunlight that managed to leak through the slits in the screens on the windows.
The swordsman had been out in the woods, training even though he was quite sure of his abilities. He'd not been on a mission in a few weeks, on the run from hunters, and wanted to be careful that his technique would not fade from his mind.
It was unlikely that anything such as that would ever happen to him, but there was always the off-chance that one had to be ready for. Thinking of problems and trials like that had kept him and Haku alive and well in these past years; there was no reason to break tradition now.
After Zabuza had declared himself suitably refined for the day, he had returned to what he supposed was his home for the moment. He and Haku had used this house in the past, and he'd been rather surprised to find that it was still a suitable place for them to rest.
When he arrived, it was to an empty house; he couldn't even hear the loud thing that Haku had been keeping safe in his room. Zabuza had sat down, then, and unsheathed his sword, beginning the tedious process of cleaning and sharpening the long blade.
Now, he was finished with that and… wasn't exactly sure what to do now. It had been a while since had last been alone with free time on his hands. Usually, with Haku around, there was something the brunet wanted to do, and Zabuza indulgenced in those wants, as long as they were reasonable.
Thinking of Haku made Zabuza glance up from his sword, eyeing the white rabbit that somehow managed to escape his wrath, even when he threatened it. Haku had been acting strangely lately, and, although he was loath to admit it, Zabuza had begun to get a bit worried.
The first instance had been, of course, when Haku had hugged him. It was very out of character for the young fighter; if he ever acted cuddly, it was towards the random animals he picked up along their travels.
Then, there was the new animal. Not that there was anything very different in Haku bringing home an animal, but it was very peculiar that Zabuza had seen neither hide nor hair of the creature. Often, whatever thing Haku had drug in would find its way out, leading to both shinobi chasing it. But Haku seemed to keep this one locked away very tightly.
Zabuza's gaze moved to Haku's door, his eyes narrowing. Could his young companion be keeping something from him? It was difficult to imagine; Haku keeping a secret. It was almost laughable, really. Sometimes, Zabuza really wondered how Haku managed as a shinobi.
Then he remembered that he was the only one who saw Haku when he was off his guard. When the duo was fighting, Haku was like an entirely different person; a tool, ready to jump at the slightest command. He was ruthless and precise, seemingly unconcerned for the number of human lives that fell to him and his master.
But when everyone else had left; when it was just Haku and Zabuza, it was as though Haku had taken off more masks than just the hunter one. The caring, soft Haku was always there at the end of the day, fussing over Zabuza or some other problem, and he was always there at the beginning of the day, making ready for their next journey.
Zabuza knew that to exist, shinobi had to make themselves into a duality; had to be able to snap feelings on and off in an instance; had to learn not to think of the enemy as another human. But he'd never met anyone who'd completed this as surely as Haku had.
It was as though he were two different people entirely; no one could ever guess that the boy behind the white mask was the same one that would stop and pick up random, helpless animals. He was so useful…
Which was part of the reason why Zabuza was worried about his partner. He'd become attached to the boy, and even depended on him a bit. After all, it was hard to disguise fanged teeth and a face recognized for miles. Haku, at least, was able to fit into a crowd easily enough.
Zabuza stood, running a hand through his hair. It was time to see what exactly Haku had been hiding from him. Well, he wasn't entirely sure Haku was hiding it from him, but damn! He was curious about this animal!
All Haku had said was that it was a very large snake, but it seemed to be causing quite a few problems to be just a snake, no matter what size it was. It was distracting Haku, and for some reason, that alone was enough to make Zabuza want to get it out of his house.
The shinobi stalked over to Haku's door, readying himself for anything that might be lurking in the room. In his mind, the snake was at least ten feet tall, with fangs as long as his legs, saliva dripping onto to floor. What else could be distracting Haku so thoroughly other than a true monster?
But as he threw open the door and peered inside, Zabuza was greeted with a less-than-exciting view: nothing. The shinobi frowned, wondering if the thing was just hiding somewhere.
He walked around the strangely clean room, scanning the area for possible hiding places. He opened the closet doors; nothing. He tore open the dresser drawers; still nothing. Under the bed, hiding in the sheets, under the pillows; nothing, zip, nada.
Zabuza sighed, sitting down on his tool's bed. Perhaps Haku was out with the pet now, letting it go free. Or just letting it stretch out in a more natural habitat. Hopefully, it was the former; Zabuza was ready for life to go back to normal.
With nothing left to do, Zabuza got up again, ready to go back to doing nothing for a while. But then he remembered something he had come across while he had been searching Haku's room; that broken plate.
The shinobi looked down at it, wondering when Haku had broken it. A frown came to his face; Haku wasn't clumsy by any means, so how could he have dropped it? Could it have been the pet that knocked it off?
Zabuza growled, getting sick of the guessing game. It annoyed him that he had no idea what exactly Haku had brought home with him. For all he knew, Haku had been making it up all along, though he wasn't sure what Haku would gain from anything like that.
Zabuza went back into the living room, flopping back down into his favorite chair. Not much to do, really. He glanced around, eyes resting on the sword at his feet once again. Much to his disappointment, he didn't see anything that need obvious improvement on his sword.
His gaze moved around again, before resting on the small kitchen just a few feet away. Usually Haku did the cooking, but the boy wasn't exactly around at the moment… and it would give him something to do…
A growl from his stomach decided the matter. Zabuza stood and made his way towards the kitchen, intent on cooking. Or at least attempting to do something similar to cooking. Whichever came first.
Yikes, really short, but I can't write anymore. The next chapter will be longer, I promise.
Zabuza was in this chapter, to make up for his absence lately!
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