Yes, I know I'm dragging it out. Sorry, I really don't mean to do it, it's just how the story reacts.
Zabuza flicked the old sign for 'halt' with his left hand, Haku responding immediately by stopping where he stood, pulling Shizuka into doing the same. The shinobi who had since identified himself as 'Ao' seemed to notice their stop, but chose not to react in any way as he led the ex-swordsman into the tavern.
He parted the curtain that hung in the entryway, revealing a small part of the drinking den that lied behind it; alert flickered over nearly a dozen different faces, the rest of them remaining indifferent to the new arrivals. The swordsman scowled, not liking the fact that he was so outnumbered in such tight quarters.
Messing around with third-class ninja in the Land of Sea was light exercise compared to what a fight with this many trained Mist ninja would be like. A part of Zabuza wanted him to try his luck anyway, forsaking whatever Ao and his people had to offer, only to die quickly to the collected, rational side of him.
Led to one of the side tables, he casually stuck the seversword into the wooden floor, shooting a glance at the tavernkeep, daring him to protest. The man said nothing, pouring himself a shot of something and downing it in one quick gulp. Ao, who still hid his hands in the long sleeves of his robe, took the seat opposite to the wall, waiting patiently for the swordsman to get comfortable.
"Care for a drink, Master Zabuza? I imagine it's been ages since you had a decent Kirigakure brew."
"A bottle." The demon simply stated.
At first nothing happened, people just drinking and chatting amongst themselves in low voices. The strategist and the swordsman did nothing to add to the background noise, just watching one another through air packed with tension. Taking notice of the fact that no one is doing anything, Ao turned around.
"What are you waiting for!? Get the man his drink!" He hissed, prompting the tavernkeep to immediately bend down and pull up what looked like a moderately expensive bottle of booze. Grumbling something to himself, the man walked over to their table, placing the drink on Zabuza's side of the table.
He didn't seem to be a shinobi, but he looked to be far more experienced than the usual civilian. Maybe ex-military, if the hard and stiff posture was anything to go by. His chin was hidden by a thick dark beard, his hands kept hidden behind his back; Zabuza estimated that the man had at least two to three knives hidden somewhere on his person.
"Anything else I could git for ya, sirs?" He spoke in a thick accent, one that belonged far further to the land's north than this island tavern.
"That would be all." Ao replied in his usual curt voice, giving a quick wave of his hand.
"Aye, sir." The man spoke, inclining his head slightly before turning around and retaking his spot behind the counter.
Zabuza quickly twisted the top off of the bottle, pouring a respectable part of the bottle down his throat immediately. Being jonin, he knew the D-rank medical technique for removing the adverse effects of alcohol, but he had no intention of using it, at least while he was stuck in the tavern.
"Easy passage into the village, easy access to the Mizukage's tower. No interruptions while you do your bit."
"Why?"
The man arched an eyebrow at the question, but otherwise took it in stride. "Symbolism. Even when you first staged a coup, people believed it was the right thing to do."
"And if I die?" The swordsman deadpanned, taking another sip.
"You tired him out enough for us to clean up." Ao returned in the same tone, the corner of his lip twitching upwards for a moment.
Zabuza's expression was blank, the swordsman failing to appreciate the man's dry humor. To him, the idea of a resistance group already planning to execute the child Mizukage was only an unlikely possibility. To see that it was the actual state of things pissed him off slightly.
In actuality, their existence tipped the scales to his favor considerably, but the fact remained that he'd have to kill a fucking Kage. Sure, anyone could become a Kage, but obviously enough, not many did; to be the one fire-breathing, monster-summoning savage above all others required something extra, something not as easily accessible as chakra.
Instead of speaking, Zabuza took another tug at the bottle, bringing it down to half. Playing along with whoever was backing Ao seemed to be the smart play, so he'd do that, but one question kept bugging him - a question he wanted answered.
"Who's the leader?" He asked.
"You wouldn't believe me." Ao replied, giving a small smirk.
Giving an unamused snort, he dunked the last of the drink, leaving an empty bottle on the table. His eyes darted to the exit, counting the shinobi from where he was seated to there. He frowned, realizing that his odds were shit, even if he tried using the shunshin.
The shunshin, for all its' practicality, had a couple of weaknesses:
First, it transported, not teleported.
Second, the preparation for it lit you up like a beacon to anyone who was sensing for chakra.
Deciding to scrap the idea of just getting out of there, Zabuza leaned back, choosing to instead entertain a stray thought about Haku and Shizuka's wellbeing. They were resourceful kids, sure, but they were still kids. Odds are that, when he walks out of this tavern, they won't be waiting where he told him to.
"Try me."
"I don't think I will."
"Negotiation tactics seem to have changed since I was last here..." He drawled, slightly annoyed with the cyclops' attitude, "Because I could've sworn that getting someone to kill a Kage for you usually meant you had the decency to answer a few questions."
Ao shrugged. "Times change."
Zabuza shook his head.
Then he swung the bottle at the man's head, sending him crashing onto the ground, unconscious from the sudden blow.
Reach for the Kubikiribocho, duck under some guy's katana, kick out another guy's knee... Zabuza was warming up.
The civilian patrons, at least those who were sober enough to notice the commotion, immediately ducked under their tables, intend on hiding there until the whole ninja situation blew over. The ninja themselves, however, immediately took up positions around the tavern, blocking off all the exit points.
Leaning back to dodge a swipe, Zabuza swung back forward with force, planting his foot on a guy's chest, pushing him back, over the counter, sending a rain of bottles to come crashing down from the upper shelves. Catching one midair, the swordsman chucked it at the nearest shinobi, not bothering to check if it connected or not. By the time it reached him, he was already next to him, sword descending upon the man at a rapid pace.
The tavernkeep, who had apparently avoided the initial few hits, decided to take Zabuza's side for some reason, attacking one of the shinobi from behind, letting his head bounce off of the shiny counter surface after forcing it to collide with it. He got a lucky dodge in, avoiding what would be a disabling chop to the neck, only to fall prey to a haymaker from some guy who popped up from the tavern's rooms.
Somewhere along the line, Zabuza had dropped his sword, forced to kick over a table to ensure a minimal amount of 'safe' space. The shinobi present seemed to be under orders to keep him alive, as not one resorted to the things that would surely kill or maim him under the conditions, explosives or lightning jutsu coming to mind. Grateful that the fight, which was basically a glorified bar brawl, was at least going to be sporting, Zabuza proceeded to kick the table forward, making one of the attackers have to hop it, only to get tagged with a wide-swinging left.
More bottles flew through the air, the tavernkeep blissfully unaware of the fact that a large chunk of his more valuable liquor was used as throwaway projectiles. Zabuza tried keeping the rest of the dwindling fighting force away from him, but in close quarters without his sword, there was only so much he could do.
Before finally going down, the demon of the mist had floored another four jonin of Kirigakure.
"This changes things." Shizuka spoke, leaning against the tavern's wall. She had considered sneaking over to the window in order to get a bead on a good eavesdropping location, but gave up the moment Haku had pointed out the fact that they were being watched.
Still, the boy couldn't disagree. The presence of other ninja willing to aid their cause was a very welcome change of pace. Perhaps now, with their backing, this suicide mission just might work out. He was ready to die fighting for Zabuza's ambition, and had once almost done exactly that, but any idea with a higher chance of survival was at least worth entertaining.
"Think he'll let you go, now that he has backup?" She asked, a small glimmer of hope in her eyes.
Haku shook his head. "No, I don't think he will."
Obviously not getting the answer she had hoped for, Shizuka frowned, crossing her arms. "Why not?"
It would be so easy... he need only tell her the smallest bit of the truth, and she'd tear down the rest of the illusion herself. But would that be the right thing to do? Not for her or for himself, but for Zabuza's ambition? Was her presence somehow important to the mission?
If he were to tell her, this was the perfect opportunity. They were deep in Water territory, surrounded by people who shared Zabuza's goal and seemed to be interested in soliciting his help. Telling her now would give her little choice to try and seek vengeance. She could stay and help... or she could walk away.
"Shizuka..." He began, only to cut away almost immediately afterwards. He couldn't do it anymore; he couldn't keep lying.
"When coming across a neutral operative, what is the standard procedure during a mission?" He asked, wishing he had his mask to put on. He didn't know why, but the desire was there.
She gave him a puzzled look, then thought about it, reciting from memory. "Assume the operative to be a threat. Avoid or neutralize."
"Yes, that's correct."
"Bully for me. I still don't get what that has to do with anything." She deadpanned, still unable to see where he's going with the conversation.
Haku gave a weak smile, easing into a loose stance. He couldn't risk her lashing out and getting a lucky hit right before the mission. If she takes it poorly, he'd deal with her... like shinobi.
"Everything. I arrived into Nadeshiko as a neutral operative. A rogue Yuki on the run from the man who would go on to terrorize the village."
The girl blinked.
"You..."
They messed up... In their thirst for a bloodline user, they didn't do a full screening. Haku Yuki was a fugitive, but from the Mist, rather than Zabuza; It would explain his skill, as no one was good enough to beat her so consistently with just what he managed to teach himself on the run...
To think that she was so willing to trust him... to let him sleep in her own bed.
He caught her swing, jabbing his fingers into a pressure point on the forearm, making her flinch with pain. Grunting, the girl tried again, catching the boy off guard with a feint. The back of her hand connected with his head, sending him teetering off to the side.
She immediately clutched her numb arm, a reflexive action rather than a rational one; keeping it in stance would have been more efficient.
"You lied to me!" She screamed, stepping in to kick the boy while he was off balance. He swayed away in the last second, merely getting grazed by what would have been a powerful kick, had it connected.
"I trusted you, dammit!" Louder this time, desperation polluting her voice.
It was all a lie. Everything he said, every single thing... lies.
What she felt about him... it was all built for a façade, a false image he created to carry out whatever the mission the Mist's demon had given him. The thought was sickening, to have failed as a kunoichi so profoundly that she'd fall to a rouge ninja boy's charm... If ever she was to return to Nadeshiko, she would have to give up her inherited title. A leader was not supposed to be so easily tricked like that...
Haku had stood up, keeping his stance solid, but making no move to attack. Why would he? He got what he wanted, after all. She was here on this godforsaken island, with her home and family across the sea. Returning home would take weeks, months...
She swung again, more out of rage than any hope to actually hurt him, only to end up swept off her feet by the boy's low feint. She looked upon the darkening sky, the tavern's bleary lights, then finally at the boy's face. It was all so meaningless.
"Oh? Am I interrupting something?"
Haku jerked around, facing the new voice, while Shizuka only barely tilted her head. Both saw the red-haired woman in front of them, a mature-looking kunoichi wearing a simple blue combat dress.
She seemed amused by the scene in front of her, turning to signal something to the surrounding shinobi the moment they moved to act on something inside the tavern.
"Let him have his fun... and have faith in your comrades." She spoke in a gentle tone, shooting the nearest man a slightly disappointed look.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" The man asked, giving a displeased frown once the woman only smiled at his response.
She shook her head, turning her attention back to the two children.
"Whatever your little spat was about, I'm afraid you're going to have to postpone the fisticuffs. You need to come with me." She declared, placing a hand on her hip.
"Until Zabuza returns we won't-" Haku began, only to get cut off immediately.
"We'll come." Shizuka interrupted, willing herself to get off of the ground.
The woman smiled, motioning to a small dirt path off to the side. "Well, isn't that just grand." Wisely enough, she positioned herself in the middle, between the Yuki survivor and the Nadeshiko princess.
Suddenly, there was a crashing sound, a man flying out the door, crashing face-first into the ground. He struggled to get up for a moment, completely ignoring the bloody mess his face now was, rolling up a sleeve before ducking back in, screaming bloody murder about creative ways he intends to violate Zabuza with the sword.
Haku cast a worried look at the tavern, while Shizuka only huffed.
The woman completely ignored the event, motioning for the two of them to move. They both obliged, trudging along the dirt path silently. Children were so adorable, having their little relationships and lover's spats...
She frowned, deciding that once this whole thing blows over, and Ao becomes Mizukage, she'll devote the time necessary to finally find a man worth her time.
"Where are we going?" The boy inquired, dissatisfied with the fact that the tavern was now out of earshot. Whatever was happening there, he had little doubt it would end badly... But Zabuza wouldn't go that far, would he?
The girl looked like she wanted to add something, but then cut herself off, just giving the Yuki a hateful glare.
Mei smiled. "You two stick out. If dear Yagura wasn't so busy spiralling into madness, he'd have no trouble tracking you down just from that. I had some clothes prepared for you... the proper street fashion for the Hidden Mist, you understand."
Shizuka flinched, the memory of the boy guarding her as she changed coming back all too vividly. Haku himself didn't seem to take the info much better, lowering his gaze and looking off to the side. The whole thing was just so adorable to the sole adult in the group.
"Let me tell you a story..." She trailed off, smiling.
"That... was embarrasing." Ao spoke, making sure that he wasn't cut when Zabuza hit him. Seeing no blood even after a thorough check, he thanked the spirits for his luck, turning his eyes to the colossal mess that covered the majority of the tavern.
A few shinobi were still out, the tavernkeep as well. The civilians had long since bolted, using the first opportunity to do so, the moment when Zabuza went down. The seversword, comically enough, was somehow stuck in the ceiling.
"The place is a fucking mess," One of the conscious shinobi observed, giving a grin in reply to the look Ao shot him, "Oh lighten up. So you lost the scrap... big deal."
The tactician shook his head, turning back to the unconscious form of Zabuza Momochi. To think that the man caused this big of a mess, taking down this many on his own... they were right to seek his aid. If anyone was crazy enough to take the Mizukage in single combat, it would be this man.
"Has a good left hook, though." Another added, reacting much the same way as the man beforehand.
"Think he'll do it?" Someone asked.
"She could." Another answered.
"She wanted him to do it, though."
"Yeah, because she knows that whoever takes him down is getting the hat."
"Wouldn't you want the hat? I mean, being Mizukage is kind of a big fucking deal."
"Yeah, one that ends in violent death."
No one replied to that.
"It is a hat trick..." The first one began, only to duck under Ao's attempt to backhand slap him.
"Geez, man. Don't throw a fit." He grinned, stepping back just in case. Then again, Ao will get his revenge sooner or later... Hiding isn't an option with that Byuakugan of his.
Most of them knew of it, but no one really knew the story. Ao himself never told, and most of the stories that circled around were plain ridiculous... a fan favorite was the one where he won it in a game of shogi against the Hyuga clan head during a diplomatic visit.
Of course, diplomatic visits weren't really a thing during Yagura's reign... then again, neither was shogi.
"Clean this mess up, meet me on the docks." Ao declared, readjusting his eyepatch once more before calmly walking out of the tavern.
The assembled shinobi exchanged looks, following it up with a collective shrug. Sure, they were hard-ass professionals on the job, as was expected of them, but during their free time, which this counted as, they could relax a bit and enjoy the shots they took at one another for the laughs.
"Not me!" Some guy shouted, bolting out of the tavern after Ao. A few faces shown signs of disappointment due to not coming up with it first, but most were just indifferent. It was, after all, just good fun. The same guy returned a couple of minutes later, deciding to help haul Zabuza out of the tavern, and towards the docks.
The plan was simple, get Zabuza in, take down the ANBU, let Zabuza handle the Mizukage, then clean up the ensuing mess. With the showing he gave in the brawl right now, the Demon seemed to be in good shape, good enough to be unhindered in a fight, at least.
"Think he'll do it?" The question was repeated.
"Fuck off."
The two young shinobi sat in the shanty; the clothes they were given seemed worn, but not too much. They were clean, comfortable, and appropriate for both stealth and combat. They sat on opposing ends, troubled looks on both their faces.
The story Mei Terumi had told was a simple one, neither long nor overly detailed. It was a simple story with an even simpler purpose - to convey a message. The message was just as simple, comparing the Mist of old to the Mist they need Zabuza to build.
She spoke of the cleanings, the readjustment camps, the public executions. She listed every single bloody practice that was common in the mist, speaking in a relaxed, almost detached tone. It was the way all the shinobi of Kirigakure spoke about the regime; distant, reserved…
Readjustment camps were prisons in every sense of the word. Those born of the bad blood were brought there to be held, kept sedated and numb, oblivious to the passage of time. Yagura was no fool, of course. While he knew the dangers of the bloodline users, was no fool. Every once in a while, he'd have a member of the ANBU, male or female come in and help maintain the bloodline.
Last time Mei had had to do a run in the camps, the count held a dozen Hyoton users, half a dozen Yoton users, and only three Futton users, her cousin included. The one time she tried to talk to her, the girl was so out of it that she didn't even notice her. Medic said they used some kind of herb-based aerosol to keep them docile.
But even that wasn't what had tipped the scales for her…
Third time you tour the camps, they get you to take a round in the red wing, the most isolated part of the camp. 'Red' was a very carefully chosen word for the wing, as she would inevitably find out…
No, it was not blood… though part of her believed that it would be a greater mercy.
With the last word said, the woman only gave her usual smile, disappearing out the door. Haku and Shizuka remained, still processing what she had told them. If that was the true state the mist was in, Zabuza needed to succeed.
Silence lingered in the shanty a while longer, Shizuka pulling at the edge of the frighteningly low-cut shirt. She cast a tired look to the boy, intent on finding a response; words eluded her, and the already heavy silence slowly became unbearable.
"Why did you bring me here?" She spoke, finally.
"I don't know." Haku replied, his expression blank.
To think that all this time, the ambition… the goal… it was to stop that.
But that wasn't what surprised him; Hyoton users were alive… his family was alive. That story changed everything… he needed to help Zabuza in the upcoming fight, he needed to ensure the swordsman's victory. Everything they've done, all those people they killed, the odd jobs they were forced to pull off… it all led to this one clash… a fight to decide the fate of the village.
If Zabuza won… Haku had a future. Not just as a rogue-nin, but an actual future...
The dream, Zabuza's dream of turning the village into a place where people like him could live and thrive… it wasn't just a dream. The end was clear on the horizon, and they only needed to run the final stretch, to strike the deciding blow… to end one last life in their exile.
"You don't know?" She asked, frowning.
Haku said nothing, only raising his head slightly to offer a weak smile.
"So my involvement in all of this is...what? A whim of Zabuza's?"
"It's possible."
She shook her head.
This was absurd. Taken from her own village, thrown into the bloody Mist on the eve of a revolution… Why? Why her? And why now? This wasn't supposed to happen, she was supposed to keep training for several more years, then inherit the title of village leader… she wasn't supposed to be tangled up in this mess…
But hearing the story, the inhumanities the people of the Mist lived with on a daily basis… she couldn't just ignore that. She was going to be a village leader one day, a leader sworn to uphold the ideals of justice and fairness in Nadeshiko; She couldn't back out now, not after all this.
Maybe it was fate that Haku had walked into her that day… a turn of events all intended to bring her to this one point, this one final choice to make:
Do what you want to do… or do what's right?
Right... so... next chapter is finale? I swear I'm not doing this on purpose... :/
By the way, I'm curious about something:
Why is Sakura x Itachi so popular on the site? The two don't even meet in canon...