The first two weeks of class passed without incident. Chojuro spent the majority of his time with the Golden Trio, sitting in on their classes to observe magic in action, while Suigetsu spent most of his time with Hagrid, taking care of the various creatures Hogwarts had to offer.
The fact that he could help.. um.. trim. Yes, let's go with trim.. or.. well. To put it nicely, Suigetsu helped with population control of the more dangerous creatures in the Forbiden Forest as a way to get past his boredom. He did become rather fast friends with the Game Keeper, Hagrid. Especially when said giant doesn't mind a kid with a stubborn streak and an appreciation for 'cute lil'critters'. Even if Suigetsu's reasons for learning was of a less.. nurturing intent. Regardless, Suigetsu was learning as fast as Hagrid was able to speak.
Kimimaro split his time between potions class and the library. The former out of personal interest in the subject. After all, when a man boasts he can brew fame and glory, you need to be sure whether he's just boasting, or if he's got a grain of truth mixed in with those words.
But the stint in the library was entirely professional. Sabotage. It took him the entirety of two weeks, and many late nights but after that time, there was no information pertaining to the Hidden Villages or the Elemental Nations in the Library. Not even the Restricted section.
He had to thank the clone technique though. If it wasn't for that Kami-blessed technique it'd have taken far longer, and some curious little witch named Hermoine may have found some information that the Kiri ninja would rather keep secret. Of course, since the bone user didn't have access to teachers private studies, he couldn't censor those yet.
That was a problem for another day though. For now, he was just casually flipping through the third year potions textbook, making notes on what concoctions would be useful for the village as well as their ingredients. They may have to maintain a trade agreement so the village could purchase supplies in bulk. After all, something like the Draught of Peace would be invaluable on a mission.
And that's not even considering how the Torture and Information Division will react to a few vials of Veritaserum. They'd probably throw themselves a party. Kimimaro also made sure to write down the various healing potions for his friends among the medical staff. They'd probably enjoy any of the strange potions.
Finally, Haku. The social butterfly of the group. He spent the first two weeks socializing with anyone and everyone, well, aside from the Slytherin, but that was a tactical decision more so than anything personal. Haku was trying to make as many friends as possible, and being anything more than polite with the House of Snakes would damn him in the eyes of at least the Gryffindors.
Prejudice idiots, the lot of them. But, again. Not his problem.
No, now he had the pleasure of standing in one of the many hallways, watching as a pale blonde Slytherin flanked by two doughy goons were floating a pair of shoes over their heads. Obviously taunting the unseen student. Well we couldn't have that now, could we?
The blonde one looked rather familiar.. where oh where had he seen such a shade before... Oh yes. It took him a moment, but Haku figured it out. A man with similar hair along with a women that Haku assumed was the man's wife spent part of the game trying to talk to Zabuza-san.
Trying being the key word. Zabuza spent the entirety of the game chatting with either Mr. Weasley or random members of the British Government, trying to get a feel for the climate and everyone's importance.
Now if only Haku could remember what Zabuza said about blonde.. did he call him a snake.. no... hm.. well. He could always come back to that. For now, he had to deal with Blondie Jr.
"Excuse me. I might wrong, but aren't the hallways supposed to be clear during class hours?" Haku spoke up from behind the trio in green, his voice sweet and curious as if he didn't even notice what they were in the middle of. Of course, he'd already heard the victim of their attention being called 'Loony' and a 'Freak', so they weren't going to get away easily.
Blondie Jr turned around at the voice, blinking once he saw Haku in his normal feminine attire. No way he was going to wear robes as drab and awful as the school uniform. He had his pride to consider. Regardless, Blondie recognized Haku, and since his tie was green, he was probably going to smooth talk her.
"We were just trying to help Loony Luna here find her shoes. The crazy bat lost them again." Well, Blondie wanted to pretend he was the hero.. How stupid did he think Haku was? Wait a tick.. Luna.. Luna.. A quick glance over Blondie's shoulders told Haku all he needed to know.
"I see, how kind of you. It takes a truly kind, courageous, and selfless person to help someone in need. You are a true example of the Gryffindor mentality." Haku smirked. He knew the Slytherin's hated being compared to their red and gold house mate, so why not use that to his advantage?
Funny enough, Blondie's face went from the polite ass-kissing look Haku had seen a hundred times since Zabuza became Mizukage to one of barely contained anger. Oh, he struck a nerve. Perfect.
"I am a Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, thank you. I am a proud Slytherin, instead of one of those Blood traitors or Mudbloods." There was a very clear under current of venom beneath those words... Oooh and now everything came back to Haku. Well, he'd save that little tidbit of a memory for later.
"I'm sorry. I just thought that someone with such a long, proud, inbred, illustrious reputation as the Malfoy's wouldn't feel the need to stoop any lower. After all, only children and people with rather small.." Haku's grin grew wider at the small pause, in a matter that to anyone watching would look innocently playful. "Ego's feel the need to bully another. I'd have though better from the house of Malfuy."
"It's Malfoy! You ignorant, foreign witch!" Blondie screeched, his face turning a nice pink in rage and embarrassment.
Haku just waved off the comment before Draco could start ranting. "Apologies. The English language is rather.. foreign to me. Now do run along children. I'd rather prefer to talk to young Miss Lovegood. I'm sure she'd be far more enjoyable company."
The doughy boys just looked at Draco, who didn't know what to say. So he decided to be stubborn and stay in place. Seeing what their boss was up to, the meat sacks stayed in place as well, trying to look threatening. It was rather cute.
Luna just stood back and watched with a smile, wondering when she'd get her shoes back. She didn't have class, but she had other things to find as well. Mostly things stolen by other creatures such as Nargles.
"I believe I will be staying here, until I am given an apology." Blondie said with his nose in the air, exposing his throat.
Well, when someone presents you with a target such as that. It'd be rude to -ignore- it. And Haku was rarely rude. So, quicker than the Three Stooges and Luna could blink, Draco crumbled to the floor. Knocked out from a punch to some pressure points along the boys neck. Haku gave Kami a quick thanks for all the assassination training he'd received. It came in rather handy even when going for non-lethal take-downs.
"Oh my, shouldn't you two be taking him to the Nurse?" Haku flashed an innocent smile at the yet unnamed Grab and Goyle before they started to panic, carting their boss off to Madame Pomfrey. The best part? Haku was most likely going to get off free of charges and with a bit of luck suspicion.
Sure Blondie may have a bruise, but with what the witnesses saw, they'd probably describe it as Haku using some sort of wordless magic. And when they tried to find a trace of the spell used on the boy, they'd find nothing. Haku could even use this incident for later. After all, didn't Blondie faint from the beauty of the foreign girl. That'll knock him down a peg or two.
Haku's gloating was interrupted by someone gently pulling on his arm-guards. The ice ninja turned around, to see Luna's misty eyes looking up at his.
"Ah, Lovegood-san. A pleasure to see you again. Though I am rather embarrassed to admit I haven't had the time to obtain the bracelet you recommended." Haku smiled at the slightly shorter girl, who had taken advantage of the confusion to put her shoes back on.
"Don't worry. There are less nargles buzzing around your head. So they must have found someone more to their taste." Luna smiled back, to Haku she seemed less guarded than the first time. So that was a plus.
"Is this the first time this has happened?" Haku had to ask.
"Oh yes. But I always get my stuff back eventually, so I don't see an issue with it." Luna's voice was oddly happy compared to the words coming out of her mouth.
"Really? And why don't you fight back instead of just standing around?"
"For the same reason you continue to wear women's clothes after people have figured out your game. Would you change yourself cause someone called you loony or a freak? I don't believe so, shinobi-san. So I won't change either. I'm happy with how I am."
Luna's confident smile almost made Haku's jaw drop. "I'm afraid I don't know what you are talking about Lovegood-san." Shinobi. She definitely used the word shinobi. Haku decided to play it safe.
"Really? I could have sworn.. hm.. maybe Daddy's book was wrong... you all wear the symbols of the Bloody Mist.." Luna's confidence faded from her face to be replaced with confusion, while Haku's began to race. Someone knew about that nickname as well. This was not good.
"Lovegood-san. If you wish, I'd be happy to answer any questions you had?" Might as well see what the girl knows, and where she knows it from. Haku didn't really agree with the censoring of info, but when your village has a history as bloody as the Village Hidden in the Mist, you got to understand that making good first impressions are important.
"That sounds grand." Was all Luna said before staring at Haku.
"Do you want to talk here, or would you rather somewhere more comfortable?" Haku was starting to understand why she was called 'Loony'. Still, it was rather cute. Like a lost bunny. That thought brought a small smile to Haku's face. Hopefully Zabuza was taking care of Wata.
Luna just nodded and took off down the hall at a quick walk, leaving Haku to keep up with her. An easy task for a trained ninja. Took them a few minutes, and mental threats to those blasted moving staircases but the pair made it to the seventh floor.
Haku stood back and watched as Luna paced back and forth in front of a blank stretch of wall. Just as he was going to ask what she was doing, an ornate wooden door materialized before his eyes.
Of course, magic. What else could it be? The Ice-Ninja thought with a small hint irritation as he held the door open for Luna. How the door worked is something he'd have to figure out at a later date.. or today. Depends on how open Luna is to giving information.
Haku was rather surprised when he stepped inside. Why? Because in the middle of a medieval wizard castle was a tea room, that seemed to be an exact copy of the one back home. The cushions looked the same, the table looked the same, even the table ware looked the same.
Now Haku was very curious, cause either these wizards had a way to bypass the many seals and traps that blocked access to the Momochi Compound's Tea room, or they had a way to make a copy of the layout and remake it.. The thought both terrified and excited Haku. If it was the latter, the infiltration division could better familiarize themselves with the workspace and offices of potential targets.
What will these wizards think of next? Probably something useless. Hopefully.
Luna took a seat at the table, giving Haku an inquisitive look as he stood by the door, trying to puzzle out what exactly these wizards games were. Finally noticing the look he was getting, Haku sat down across from Luna.
"Lovegood-san, may I ask what this place is?"
"The Room of Requirements of course." Well that explains nothing...
"And what does it do?" Haku asked, as he picked up the kettle, cursing slightly when he found it empty. Well, no tea with the conversation aparantly.
"Why it can do nearly anything you need, well except make food." Now Luna was looking at Haku, like one would look at a child who didn't study for a test. Excuse him for having magic that made sense.
"Fascinating.." Apparently he was wrong.. this room would be perfect for training out of sight from the wizards. Not that Suigetsu cared. He was taking every chance he could to show off his liquid body to anyone who'd watch. Least it drove the students curiosity and gave Chojuro a chance to test his skills against suicide tactics.
"Now, why don't we get to the topic at hand? You know-"
"No one will believe me even if I said anything." Luna interrupted with that dreamy smile she always wore. "The fact that I'm even talking bout it will make people question if anything they find out about you or your people is real."
"I'm sorry Lovegood-san, but I still don't feel like this is a worthwhile trade. Your word may carry more weight than you think. So please, is there anything I can do to ensure your silence?" Haku put on his most charming smile, silently cursing Kami for making Luna a women, it'd be so much easier if she was male.. then again she also knew that Haku was a boy so..
Well this was just getting confusing.
Luna just smiled back as she shook her head. "No, no. I'm fine... but if you'd be willing to tell me more about your village.. That'd be lovely."
Haku took a moment to weigh that fact... It wasn't his best option... nor was it his worst.. He couldn't just kill the girl. It draw too much attention, and it was wrong. Drat... Curse his conscious... "You don't want to learn any of our magic?"
That might work, teach her some of the academy level stuff, so she could show off or have some knowledge to herself. Perfect.
"No thank you. According to the book it takes a wizard years to learn even the simplest of shinobi techniques and decades to master the harder stuff... something to do with a natural affinity to wandless magic and the more physical requirements."
Huh, so someone among the wizards already tried to copy their techniques. A silver lining to this whole thing. There might be small exceptions, but basically everything they gave these wizards would be useless. "And you have this from a reliable source?"
Luna just nodded. "Estaban Toadsworth was an expert at foreign magics for his time. Many believe him to be quite mad though, and his book worth less than the parchment it was written on. But I think he was just misunderstood. After all, dealings with people from the Elemental Nations was rare at the best of time. In fact, most people still consider Shinobi to be just a myth."
Lovely, crazy girl got info from crazy book written by crazy boy, about subject most wizards believed was nuts. And Haku was going to continue the cycle with his next few words. "Then I agree. I'll tell you about the Mist... true things, not this political doublespeak we are feeding everyone else, in exchange for your silence.. and if possible, your aid?"If your people are already considered a myth, why not play around with it?
That may have been pushing it a bit. Luna blinked, as if surprised someone would ask for her help, but after a minute with a thoughtful look on her face, the girl nodded.
Haku didn't trust her just yet, but it'd be a start. And now they'd have a wizards opinion once the group started the more unsavory part of their mission... Assuming the girl would be willing to help.. well at least she'd be willing to tell them if an object is cursed or not.. hopefully... Haku decided that they'll start dealing with potentially cursed objects in a few months.
The remainder of the afternoon was spent in the Room of requirements as Haku began to explain about the Elemental Nations. He promised to tell her about the Mist itself at a later date, but for now he told her of the whole community. After all, look at the forest first, then look at the trees. Or something.
After a few hours of talking with Luna, things just start to blur together with the random questions about local flora and fauna, as well as myths. Honestly? Haku was lucky to enter the private quarters he'd had been given only slightly dazed, instead of completely out of it.
Little did he know Luna was holding back to be nice. After all, got to take things to slowly. Luna didn't want to overload the poor ninja's brain on all the fantastical creatures in the wizarding world.
But enough of that. Haku flopped onto his bed, having missed lunch and dinner, glad that the ninja's had been given their own private dormitory. Partially since the students were of 'mixed' gender. Hah, just meant Gramps hasn't yet figured things out. Well, Haku had no plans on letting that info slip just yet.
Still... he'd have to keep an eye out on Luna.. and tell everyone what happened tomorrow. Probably just to stop Suigetsu from killing the poor girl in her sleep. Surely the girl wouldn't complain about that. And finally, watch the old wizard with the freaky eye.
It reminded Haku too much of Ao's Byakugan. Which was something to be treated carefully. The fact he was always drinking from that strange flask did little to ease Haku's paranoia.
Problems, problems. So many problems. At least tomorrow was Friday. None of the shinobi had to attend classes, but they still went to some of them. Maybe tomorrow he'd spend some time with the Gryffindors. Mostly to give Chojuro a break from all their questions.
Poor kid.
Haku was starting to fall in love with the house elves that worked in the Hogwart's kitchen. He'd found it only four days ago, but he was well on his way to being one of their favorite students. Why? Simple, he was polite, respectful, and even offered to help prepare lunch.
Suigetsu called it the 'pansy approach', but the other three knew it was just Haku being Haku. None of them were going to complain though. His new found respect among the house elves gave Haku and his fellow ninja's quite a few perks. Ranging from something as inconsequential as being able to call on a house elf for a plate of sandwiches if they got hungry between classes, to something as tactically useful as a tour through Hogwarts.
Not the normal tour given to students or visitors. This was a tour directed by house elves. People who knew, and shared every secret passage and room in the castle with the kind ice ninja.
To many, it was useless trivia. To a ninja? It was an all access pass to an entire countries training facility. Nearly every witch and wizard in training came to Hogwarts. Get passed the headmaster or mistress. And you have the entire future of a country by the balls.
Seriously, it was a giant tactical oversight. Haku didn't agree with the tactic, but if the wizards ever did something to the Mist, they knew exactly where to go. Gut Hogwarts of its teaching staff and students, and the Mist would only need to deal with the combatants they had, as well as whatever suicidal... sorry. Brave civilian decided to get involved.
Hopefully it never comes to that.
But back to other things, where Haku had taken his seat beside Hermoine to enjoy a delicious breakfast of toast, jam and tea. He had hoped to ask the house elves if it'd be too much trouble for them to make food from the Elemental Nations as well, but it slipped his mind during his last conversation with Dobby.
Nice guy, Haku wondered how hard it'd be to get a few house elves to work at the Hidden Mist. Would certainly save ninja's time with upkeep on the village... Alright, now we are getting off topic.
Breakfast passed without incident... well mostly. Harry and Ron took it upon themselves to try and talk to Haku, who'd spent the previous weeks sitting everywhere and anywhere but with them. One morning it'd be with a group of first year Ravenclaw's. Next, it'd be with some third year Hufflepuff's.
Haku was the social butterfly, and everyone was growing to love her.. well him. Still thought it was a her, but regardless, the fan club was growing, with Harry and Ron leading the charge. Oh the poor little things. Still, Haku was polite, and listen to them blab about various classes.
Ron mostly talked about how their Defense against the Dark Arts... why not just say Self-defense classes? Really? It'd save people time and be a better description... but back on point. Mad-Eye Moody had apparently lived up to his title, and half the students were scared shit-less of the crock. Interesting. Doubly so when he let slip they'd be practicing defenses against the Unforgivable Curses today... or well at least one of them.
Haku made a note to pay attention to when the class would be. Being able to protect oneself against the worst the wizards had to offer? Of course he was going to go.
And Harry... well. Harry said something about Professor Snape, and other things. Frankly Haku lost interest half-way through the conversation and was simply nodding along to the ginger and black haired boy, until Hermoine decided to take pity on the poor ice ninja.
The bushy-haired witch didn't look like it, but she had an interest in fashion.. well foreign fashion. She and Haku talked about different types of kimono and the styles of clothing in the Mist. Mostly to the boys annoyance. But the group of girls, which had grown from simply Hermoine and Haku to nearly the entirety of the upper year Gryffindor women found it interesting, even electing a promise out of Haku to bring them a book eventually that showed off the designs.
The final item of interest was something that Haku got a hidden laugh out of. It was a newspaper. A simple wizard newspaper that showed the pile of corpses Zabuza left during the Quidditch cup. Apparently, nearly a month after the incident, the 'Ministry of Magic' was still, "Working hard in our endeavors to find the intent of the poor souls who lost their lives, and to punish the group who believes they could get away with the unjustified slaughter of innocent witches and wizards."
Most of the students knew it was a bunch of bull from the moment the names of the deceased's were released. Something about some of them being former Death Eater's, while others were pure-blood supremacists. All Haku knew, was that the topic was a sore spot for a lot of the snake brats. Apparently some of them lost siblings or relatives in the attack. Not Blondie though. Shame.
Haku didn't say anything to their face, after all it'd be rude to tell someone to go fuck themselves when they are still grieving. But the situation reminded him too much of the Bloodline Purge in the Mist, and any idiot who was willingly spreading such filth deserved whatever they got. People are still people. Some are smarter than others, some are stronger, kinder, taller, shorter, ruder, weaker. But when it all comes down to it, everyone still bleeds red, and still deserves a chance to find their purpose in life.
