This is a battle that really should have happened in the anime, at least in flashback form...

The Mist Assassins come across the Akatsuki!

A month has passed since the two Mist Assassins have left the Land of Waves. Yet in their minds, the images of the ones who had decided to spare their lives were still fresh. For Haku, it was the hyper-energetic blonde genin, Naruto Uzumaki. In him, he recognized a great love for those he sees as friends, no matter how new or weak their bond is. Even when Haku begged the boy to kill him, to end his existence as a shinobi, he wouldn't do it. It was not the way he done things. As for Zabuza, his thoughts often returned to the image of Sharingan Kakashi, standing in front of him on the bridge, lightning arcing from his hand. The Konoha jonin had managed to beat him every step of the way, his decision to spare his life was only a matter of coincidence. If the copy-nin had been angrier, there was no doubt that Zabuza would've met his end on that colossal concrete structure.

Now they were nearing the border of the Land of Crabs, a land known for the high cliffs and long beaches along the shoreline. It was a peaceful land, mostly devoid of shinobi activity. The only times a ninja would bother venturing there was if they needed quick passage east, just like the two of them did.

"Zabuza, how are you going to face the Mizukage alone? Would it not just end the way it did last time?" That was Haku's question. These last few days, he'd ask it every so often, wording it differently each time; it worried him. Last time, Zabuza at least had allies to fend off the ANBU assault, something he wouldn't be having this time around. No one would put their faith in him anymore, not after he had failed. Only Haku remained, his trust in the swordsman almost absolute.

And although he only answered with a grunt, Zabuza himself was also worried. He needed to train against worthy foes, and he needed a way to face Yagura without involving the rest of the village in it. Part of him knew that there was a way, but nothing concrete ever came up in his mind. Practically, he'd be going in without a plan. Shinobi that went on a mission without a plan didn't stay shinobi very long.

Still, the thing that bothered him most was Haku's injury. Although he had fully recovered, the medic-nin's words rang true - his stamina was completely ruined, shinobi travel speed was beyond his capabilities now. Although the boy kept claiming he'd fight alongside him, the swordsman knew that something like that would kill the boy, and had to plan with that in mind.

The border was getting closer, soon they would be entering a small town build right beside the crossing itself. While his information was relatively outdated, Zabuza knew the town to be little more than a simple rest stop, agriculture being what kept the town afloat. After a day's worth of travel, they finally found themselves passing through the unimpressive gates.

Even for such a small town, the place was populous, men and women of all ages milling about, going on with their daily activities. They didn't seem all too bothered with the presence of a man with a bastard sword on his back, but still gave him an adequate amount of room. While the common populace had little to do with the ninja world, most knew of their existence, but wisely kept away due to the inherent dangers of dealing with such people. Only lands such as Kumo or Konoha had open support from their civilian population.

Haku and Zabuza kept progressing, looking for a place they might stay at. The hard truth was that they simply lacked the money to board a ship, and Zabuza wasn't in the mood to live off scraps they could swipe for the duration of the three-day voyage. After all, he had to find a way to become stronger before they reached the land of water. While he did have an idea on how he'd go about that, the major issue was money, something he simply didn't have after the disaster in the Land of Waves.

After a while, they managed to find a cheap place to spend a few nights, and then they parted ways. Zabuza sealed the Kubikiribocho into a scroll, threw on a jacket and went to inquire about getting some kind of work, while Haku went to see if he could gather information on the current state of affairs in the Land of Water.

Having changed into simple clothing consisting of slacks and a shirt, the boy started going from place to place, starting with the marketplace. Lots of sea food was almost exclusively exported by the land of water, and if he could find a stall with some in the market, odds were that he'd be able to get some information. While there was a couple of stalls, the information on the hidden village itself was pretty useless, never going further than mentioning 'unrest'. At least the ports were working as usual, making the standard three day rounds from the Land of Sea. Disappointed, Haku pressed on.

His next stop was a chain of drinking dens, frequented by travelers, sailors and missing shinobi. However, that too offered little information, as not one of the men there seemed to know anything worthwhile. Growing more frustrated, the boy stepped out and cast a long stare at the street. His eyes widened upon noticing something that seemed to match the description of something Zabuza spoke about every so often. There was no doubt about it, one of the men in the uniform cloaks was carrying the bandaged sword - Samehada.

Wasting no time, Haku followed the two. When it came to tracking, every ninja village found different ways to go about it. Iwa had bees, Konoha had dogs; Kumo usually employed birds. Due to their relative isolation, Kiri went with a bit less orthodox manner, using chakra-detecting sea-slugs. Studying the beasties had led the hidden Mist village to discover a fuinjutsu technique that could link a sheet of paper with an object or person, enabling the pursuer to follow the marked target no matter how far they went. The only drawback of the fuinjutsu manner of tracking was that you needed to find and mark your target first.

Preparing the marked senbon he carried as part of his civilian loadout, Haku took careful aim. He couldn't hit near the sword, as it would just drink the chakra from the inscription on the senbon, and he couldn't hit the bladesman himself, as whoever could hold that blade was most definitely a dangerous shinobi. Seeing his opening, Haku threw the needle with his practiced accuracy, burying it into the man's sandal. It was a near-perfect shot.

Satisfied that he managed to get something for his trouble, Haku hurried back to their meeting place, hoping he'd find Zabuza before the two men got away.

The relatively new duo of Akatsuki operatives strolled through a border town close to the Land of Crabs. Their first assignment as members was to go to the Village hidden in the Mist, gathering information on the current whereabouts of their two jinchuriki. For Kisame, the whole thing was a pain in the ass, as he'd not only be prevented from fighting, something he enjoyed doing, but he'd be forced to go back 'home'. Still, right now, the job was to get to the great port in the Land of Crabs.

Moving through the crowds, the two men hardly gave the small town more than a passing glance. Each of them was absorbed in their own thoughts and problems. In Itachi's mind, stories of his past played on a loop, leaving him wondering if there was something that he missed, if there was a move he could've made to save his clan and his best friend. For Kisame, it was the desire for battle, along with his memory of slaying his mentor, the despicable man that used to wield the sharkskin blade.

Itachi's eyes twitched for only a split-second, yet his partner noticed. While they had little in common, unlike the other two groups they met and recruited, the two Akatsuki complemented each other incredibly well. Kisame in particular had surprised people with the way he managed to understand Itachi's silences. According to him, there were twenty-four separate silences Itachi used, and each carried a different meaning. However, this twitch was something he didn't yet see. "What's the matter? Why the look in your eyes?"

"Somebody stuck a chakra-loaded senbon in your footwear. It was quite a feat of accuracy." Spoke the Uchiha in his usually distant tone of voice. Perhaps it was the trauma of slaughtering his own clan that made him that way, or maybe it was just the attitude one would get after relying so heavily on genjutsu for years. To such men, reality was little more than another illusion.

Kisame grinned, "Well that's certainly interesting. I didn't expect hunter-nin this early in the journey..." He threw a glance over his shoulder, not seeing anything even remotely suspicious, "What's our move?"

Itachi didn't even turn to look at him, "We keep going as if nothing happened. When they decide to engage, it will be us with the advantage of surprise."

The monster of the mist nodded in agreement, familiar eagerness building up in the back of his mind. Somebody was going to die by his hand that day, and he couldn't wait.

He did not expect this. However, he couldn't have asked for a better turn of events. Running into another swordsman meant acquiring either a powerful ally, or a powerful weapon, both of which would help towards reaching his goal. And the fact that the sword Haku recognized was the Samehada only made things better. He'd not only get the most feared of the seven swords, but he'd kill that bastard Fuguki.

With what little there was of their gear stored away in scrolls, the two mist assassins began tracking the marked senbon. The two men had apparently left the town already, as it wasn't long before they had crossed the border.

"I'm worried. The man I saw does not fit your description of the sharkskin's wielder."

"It's probably just a henge, Haku. The blade itself won't allow itself to be transformed or hidden, so he still had to keep it on his back," seeing that his words done nothing to encourage the boy, Zabuza continued, "Fuguki is an old fool, Haku. The only reason I didn't kill him all those years ago was due to the child Mizukage's appearance. I am stronger than he is."

The boy said nothing, offering only a weak nod. What worried him is the fact that he couldn't support Zabuza with anything other than his senbon and ninjutsu from afar. The lightning blade injury had not only made long range combat risky, it made close range encounters impossible for the boy. And then there was the other man in the identical cloak. They knew nothing of this stranger, and perhaps he was just as dangerous as the swordsman...

The road had been winding through a forest for a while down, steadily going downhill. Haku's estimate was that the shore could be seen from the edge of the forest, but he didn't have time to check if his assumption was correct. The seal on the tracking scroll had stopped changing, the spot indicating the marked target apparently stopping. That was good, the two men had stopped, which gave the assassins the chance to catch up, as well as the option of ambushing them.

Detouring into the forest, the two took a long route around, positioning themselves further along the target's path. This was the ideal scenario for Zabuza, who could use the fact that the Land of Crabs was known for the occasional fog to cover up the Hidden Mist Jutsu, setting up the perfect opportunity for a silent killing.

All that remained for them now was to wait.

It wasn't that long before the two robed figures appeared in the distance, moving about as quickly as they did before Haku spotted them. The fact that they wore large hats that hidden their features slightly concerned Zabuza, but he couldn't afford to miss an opportunity like this. The Samehada was within his reach.

Focusing his chakra, Zabuza worked through the hand signs, allowing a thick mist to spread from his body, rolling over the road and through the surrounding forest. His senses focused on the mist, both his hearing and smell magnifying in potency by using the chakra as a medium. The two men were almost close enough for him to engage.

The art of silent killing is almost exclusive to the shinobi of the Hidden Mist. It uses the advantage of surprise to its fullest extent, allowing a skilled user to neutralize even a powerful enemy in a single strike. Of course, the more competent the target, the harder it was to catch them off their guard. This was commonly circumvented by attacking at odd times and angles. One of Zabuza's favorite ways of eliminating enemy shinobi that knew he was coming was to confuse them with a water clone, who would produce footsteps in the opposite direction from where the actual threat was coming from.

Essentially, the silent killing was a technique of striking at your enemy when he or she has absolutely no way of defending themselves. The Kubikiribocho was actually one of the worst blades for such an art, bested only by the Blastsword and the Sharkskin in terms of impracticality. That hardly stopped Zabuza from being the deadliest of the swordsmen when it came to using it.

Rushing forward, the demon swung the great sword, expecting to feel the soft resistance of flesh. What he felt and heard was the clashing of metal. Whoever carried the Samehada didn't just loot it off a corpse, then. Good, it wouldn't be fun if he went down in a single blow. Zabuza readied himself to try another strike.

"This is absurd. I'll get rid of this mist. Wind Style: Great Breakthrough." A man's voice spoke.

The wind jutsu did its work, carrying a blast of air through the forest, blowing away the mist. Zabuza leapt up to avoid a slash from the wrapped sword, landing on top of a nearby branch. This wasn't good, both enemies were shinobi, and by the feel of their chakra, both were top-class ninja. The one with the Samehada was a special kind of beast, his chakra rivaling even the blonde brat's monstrous chakra signature.

The two figures took battle positions, waiting for Zabuza's next attempt. "Why if it isn't Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist. Long time no see, sempai."

That voice...he knew that voice. There was no mistaking it, not many voices got the otherwise calm and collected swordsman to feel so creeped-out. The man who now held the Sharkskin blade was none other than Kisame Hoshigaki, the man who had acquired the title of 'Monster of the Hidden Mist'. He didn't expect the sword that he supposedly wielded to be the Samehada itself.

"Kisame. What happened to Fuguki?" Growled the senior swordsman, straightening himself up. Perhaps he could talk them down, avoiding an unnecessary confrontation.

"I'm afraid that Suikazan Fuguki met his untimely end by tripping over and impaling himself on his own sword," deadpanned the strange-looking bladesman. His partner cocked an eyebrow at the sentence.

The confidence with which they present themselves, paired with the strong chakra signatures...These guys aren't worth the trouble. Zabuza needed an out, and he needed it fast.

"One more question, and then I'll leave you be. You can pretend you never even saw me."

This seemed to amuse Kisame, who only let his grin grow wider. "I don't think we can do that, but feel free to ask anything you like."

Haku was doing good staying out of sight. There is no way he could even contribute to the fight, let alone be a part of it. The demon of the mist found himself running out of options. Still, he'd use the time he had as best he could. "Those robes, they're uniforms, aren't they?"

The junior swordsman actually laughed that time, finding the whole scenario amusing. Being a member of Akatsuki brought so much more than a chance to get into a good fight. It's moments like this one that really made the whole experience shine. "Uniforms of the Akatsuki. I'm sure even you heard of the name, wandering the lands and all."

Zabuza said nothing, only grunting in response. Kisame seemed to find no end to the amusement, turning to his partner. "Itachi, would you do me a favor and give us some space? I really want to see if master Zabuza kept his edge."

Giving his partner a long glare, Itachi only shrugged, moving to the side, taking a seat on a conveniently placed rock. "You can come out, boy. I sensed you back when you threw the senbon." Not getting an immediate response, Itachi resigned himself to watching the upcoming confrontation between the swordsmen. Haku soon stepped out, fearlessly taking a seat next to the infamous Itachi Uchiha, slayer of the Uchiha clan. That took some courage to do.

Realizing that he's run out of options, Zabuza sighed, then leapt down onto the road. Bringing the sword up, he took a long look at his opponent. What little he remembered about the man mostly regarded his incredible chakra levels, as well as his tendency to abuse that very advantage. He'd have to watch his step around this one, he was about as dangerous as Kakashi, and the copy-nin was holding back. Something told Zabuza that Hoshigaki doesn't know how to hold back.

Taking a deep breath, the demon of the mist rushed in, swinging the executioner's blade in a wide arc.

"So, you're Itachi Uchiha... you look a lot like your younger brother."

Itachi was surprised. If there was ever a topic he couldn't simply ignore, it was his younger brother. And this boy seemed to know him.

"You...met Sasuke?"

Haku nodded, smiling pleasantly, "Yes, I was almost forced to kill him. The Sharingan is quite a formidable kekkei genkai."

Silly little brother, letting a boy like this outdo him in battle... He needed to grow stronger if he ever hoped to revive the Uchiha clan. Loss was simply something he couldn't let himself experience.

"Tell me of your fight, please."

The boy had much to say. Apparently, he was one of the Yuki, users of the pure Hyoton. He fought not only Sasuke, but Naruto-kun as well, managing to abuse Sasuke's inexperience with the Sharingan and take him out of the fight by riddling his body with senbon. Itachi had already seen the boy's impeccable aim, so it was no surprise that he could pull of something like that.

Still, hearing that Sasuke is progressing so slowly was worrying. Even under the tutelage of Kakashi Hatake, perhaps the only man in Konoha save the Kage and the Sannin who could match Itachi, Sasuke was not making progress. If he kept moving at that pace, he wouldn't ever reach the level of ability needed to protect himself and the village... He had to motivate him somehow, and soon.

Meanwhile, the two bladesmen were locked into a very high-stakes game of chicken. While they traded blows as equals, neither was really willing to take a risk and try a different attack. From afar, it looked more like a coordinated performance than an actual battle. Steel hit something that wasn't quite steel, sending sparks flying nonetheless. Kisame, for one, was having the time of his life.

"So long since I fought a man who could handle his blade like a true swordsman... We are a dying breed, Momochi..." spoke the Akatsuki, never once losing his near-permanent grin. His attacks were straightforward, but powerful. It seemed like he was only warming up for when things really got serious.

Zabuza would never voice it, but he agreed. Matching blades against someone equal in skill gave new meaning to battle, something a simple ninjutsu showdown could never give. He danced around the Samehada, trying to get a shot in past the blade's wide defense. While none of his attacks really came through, he wasn't really trying that hard either. "Fuguki taught you well, kid."

Suddenly, the Akatsuki swordsman, changed his attack pattern, going in for a kick, covering his exposed side with his blade. Zabuza could block, and risk getting scratched by the Sharkskin, or he could dodge, giving up ground. Then again, he could just go in for an attack as well. Shifting the blade to his other hand, Zabuza readied a punch, bringing the flat side of his executioner's blade up to absorb the brunt of the incoming kick.

Noticing his foe's reaction to the attack, Kisame smiled, cutting his attack halfway in order to try and take off the demon's arm as it came. He did not succeed, forced to block when Zabuza instead kicked the blade of the Kubikiribocho forward, intending to get some damage in to the legs.

The battle was slowly heating up, and it only got better from there. Unwrapping the top of the blade, Kisame went in for another assault, this time alternating wide swipes with fast jabs and kicks. In return, Zabuza swayed from side to side, swinging his massive sword in overhead arcs in order to get some distance from his fellow swordsman. Having found their rhythm, the two eased back into the obligatory combat banter.

"Fancy meeting you here, of all places. Could it be that you've finally decided to come home, Zabuza?"

An overhead strike, followed by a quick roll and stab. Zabuza blocked, then dodged twice. His move.

"What's it to you? Besides, I may as well ask you the same question."

Switching to a reverse grip, Zabuza leapt and tried to take Kisame's head clean off his shoulders. Failing to land that, he followed up with a sweeping kick, forcing the younger bladesman to back off. He was exceptionally good. No wonder the Samehada had no issue with him as the wielder.

"Well, I wanted to invite you and that kid over there to join us, as we're heading to the Water as well. Letting you get there would hardly threaten the mission, as there's simply no way you can beat Yagura. He is no longer the same man he was back then."

Zabuza frowned, then went in for another slash. However, when this strike was blocked, he spun around, revealing the kunai in his hand. The shorter blade got the monster of the mist, tearing a wide gash in his sleeve, but failing to actually hurt him.

"You say that as if he was a man when I tried to kill him."

The Akatsuki swordsman didn't bother stopping his laughter, enjoying the little inside joke that shinobi of the Mist easily understood. Itachi wasn't very big on jokes, so travelling with him really lacked good-natured humor...

Rolling up his sleeves, revealing forearms as pale as the rest of him, Kisame took the offensive, barraging Zabuza with a series of relentless strikes. He intended to see just how tough the last of the old guard was, to see if his words held any truth to them. The only thing Kisame hated more than a liar was a man who lied to himself.

"Alright then, enough with the warm-up. Let's see if the Demon of the Mist can stand up to its' Monster!"

Itachi wasn't very amused. While conversation with the boy was pretty convenient, giving him fresh insight on Sasuke's progress, it did little to actually solve any of the numerous problems the elder Uchiha had to deal with. Now, it was nothing more than a nuisance. Kisame should be satisfied after this long...

Yet before his foot could touch the ground, he froze, noticing the ominous chakra coming from the ground. Having never before seen something like that, he concluded that it must be the Ice Style chakra, otherwise known as Hyoton. He had to applaud the kid with the patience, setting up something like that without him noticing took very careful pacing. Still, Itachi's face betrayed no surprise.

"Would you please disarm the mines you created around the stone. I'm going to assume you're not so foolish to make them contact-only."

"I'm not going to do that, Itachi Uchiha. We will stay here and watch this battle run its' course."

With mines being hidden away underground, and their chakra an elemental type he had no experience with, Itachi was forced to pause for at least a bit. Surprised that such a young boy could so effectively prevent him from interfering, he decided to sit back down and watch the rest of the fight. After all, the boy would die when they reached the Land of Water anyway.

A bit further away, the battle had reached its peak. The two swords blurred past each other, trying to land the deciding blow on the wielder. Neither man turned to jutsu, as unspoken code of kenjutsu users was that the shinobi would use his sword as long as it was in one piece. Some wouldn't stop even after their blade was shattered, Zabuza being the first one to do such a thing, due to the Kubikiribocho's tendency to mend itself in battle.

Both swordsmen turned to using kunai in their off-hands, tiny sparks flying every time any two blades collided. It wasn't long before the knives took to the air, aimed at vital spots. They were promptly deflected, and in Kisame's case, picked back up.

The Samehada was not an easy sword to use. While it was very adaptable in battle and near impossible to break, it also had quite an appetite for chakra, demanding to be kept constantly fed. For a man like Kisame, whose chakra gave him the much less used title of 'Tailless tailed beast', keeping the sword sated was no bother, and he knew how to leech chakra off of it if it started misbehaving. Put simply, it was a very delicate relationship, but both the swordsman and the sword knew exactly what to do to make it work.

However, he was through playing around. Swinging the Samehada in a wide arc, Kisame created the opening he needed to get behind Zabuza. He brought the kunai forward, intending to press it against the senior swordsman's neck and claim victory; it never came. Memories of his clash with the copy-nin still fresh in his mind, Zabuza practiced a way of covering the drawback of leaving his back open after a big attack, by swiping the opponent off their feet by using the hole in the sword as a pivot point, the handle of the blade ending up as an improvised bludgeon. It only worked once against a single enemy, and was decidedly risky, but in actual battle, he only needed one opening.

Breath ragged, Zabuza pointed at his fallen enemy with the tip of his blade, eyes gleaming with determination. "Sparring session is over Kisame, I win."

Kisame was too shocked to speak. It has been so very long since had a battle this thrilling. Of course, if jutsu were allowed, it would be a completely different story, but still... "Impressive, Master Zabuza. It still won't be enough against Yagura, though."

"We'll see, monster of the mist."

Itachi was unimpressed.

Itachi is really hard to impress.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and as always, keep spreading the word.