Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Null Hypothesis
A hypothesis is an observed and thought-out prediction. A null hypothesis is a prediction that the relationship between variables is occurring by chance. In order to find significance between variables, the null hypothesis must be disproven. How can it be disproven?
Breathing in deeply and exhaling through my nose, I allowed my shoulders to rise and fall; causing my pack to shift with the movement. The Land of Waves didn't have a lot going for it. But I had to give credit where credit was due. The cool coastal breeze paired with mild temperatures was a nice break from the humidity the Land of Fire was known for.
Despite stating we'd only see Tazuna to his home country, despite knowing who we'd be encountering down the road, Kakashi didn't call off the mission like he said he would. Turns out, unsurprisingly but annoyingly, that Kakashi was just as big of a softy for the old man's plight as the rest of team seven.
So, as we crossed the sea; traversing dense fog and stomach-turning waves, my mind ran on overdrive. How much could I recall of the first fight with Zabuza? What could or would change now that we'd be on the lookout for the Demon of the Mist? And what could I do to manipulate a desirable outcome?
I had no answers… or no satisfactory answers as we climbed out of the boat; back on land. Now, as we walked in formation; Sasuke and I in the back, Tazuna in the middle with Sakura and Kakashi at his sides, and Naruto in the front, I still had nothing.
At least the forewarning I was able to weasel out of the two chunin made everyone more alert. Naruto wasn't bouncing about trying to prove himself. Sakura was focused on the mission rather than Sasuke. Kakashi didn't even have his book out. Could I use that? Stupid question. Of course, I could. The real question was how?
"Hey", Sasuke said loud enough to pull my attention, but quiet enough not to alert the others. My eyes flickered to his; half unseeing as my mind was still stuck on the approaching ordeal. "Why did you do that?" Sasuke asked once I was looking at him. He walked with his hands in his pockets; his shoulders relaxed. But there was a disquiet frown on his face that didn't match his posture.
Why did I do that? I repeated in my head as my thoughts were forced down a different avenue. What did I do? Since getting off the boat all we've done is walk. And mostly in silence at that… I ate a ration bar at one point… can't think of anything else I've done. "Why did I eat a ration bar?" I took a guess. "I was hungry. Why? Do you want one?"
Sasuke scoffed as if I was being impossibly slow. "Back in the Land of Fire", he clarified. "With those two chunin and their deception. Why did you tell me about their presence instead of Kakashi-Sensei?"
Their deception? I had to playback Sasuke's wording. Damn, I really was slow today… Oh! "You mean the puddle? I was just thinking aloud. I didn't know we were walking into an ambush".
Narrowing his eyes, Sasuke's frown deepened into a scowl; giving me a flashback to our academy days when Iruka-Sensei assigned group work based on seating arrangement. "When they attacked you weren't surprised". Sasuke pointed out.
Shrugging as we continued traveling behind the others; I pinned my eyes to Kakashi's back. It didn't matter if Sakura and Naruto overheard. They were used enough to my antics that anything I did was just passed over as 'just the Aburame girl pushing buttons again'. Tazuna didn't know me and his ignorance of shinobi life meant his viewpoint on the matter wouldn't have much of an effect. But Kakashi… Let's just say I don't need him to look beneath this underneath.
"I was", I countered. "My heart was racing so fast that it hurt". As if to prove my point; I placed a hand on my chest. "I just don't emote. It's an Aburame thing".
Birds were twittering as we passed their branches; undisturbed by our presence. On our left; a river flowed silently over its banks. Why were we walking so close to the water? I mean, it is the Land of Waves. So, avoiding water completely probably wasn't possible. But we knew who was after us. And we knew what his element was… Kind of felt like an oversight.
There was no change in Sasuke's expression. Not that I was expecting one. From all the class assignments we'd worked on as a group (Naruto included), what was pressed upon me the most was Sasuke's natural ability to see through my bull shit. Which was a fact that probably went into Iruka-Sensei's thought process when he made the seating chart.
"I don't need your help, Aburame", Sasuke stated; almost challengingly.
Really? I blinked unimpressed. This conservation was about Sasuke feeling like he didn't need others to promote his caliber as a ninja? Well, at least that meant I didn't need to be heavy-handed with the deflections. "This Demon of the Mist, do you know anything about him?" I asked.
It was a change in topic that both allowed Sasuke a win and spared me from having to lose. Sasuke gave me his answer in silence; staring as he waited for me to elaborate. Shrugging off one strap of my back, I swung it around to my front so I could access it without ending to stop and put it down. From ahead of us, Sakura looked over her shoulder; her gaze suspicious as she tried to interpret the space between me and her crush. Despite the golden opportunity, I did nothing to rile her. The job had to come first on this occasion. Frustratingly.
Undoing one of the buckles on the top pouch, I reached into the pack and immediately found what I wanted. Conveniently, I had placed it on the top after the last time we broke camp. Just in case. Some juggling was required as I held onto the little black book, closed my pack, and shuffled it back into its proper position with its straps over my shoulders and resting on my back. It was an act only made more awkward due to Sasuke still staring at me. However, I chose to ignore him as I took my time to flip through my T&I-issued bingo book; looking for the page I wanted.
"What do you make of this?" I asked; holding out the book for Sasuke to take once I had it on Zabuza's entry.
It was a slow moment before Sasuke actually took the book. Apparently accepting information required shifty-eyed looks and feigned disinterest.
As he read and walked at the same time, Sasuke's brow wrinkled. At least he lost that narrowed-eyed suspicion. "Why do you have this?" He asked.
"T&I grunt, remember", I answered with a shrug as my eyes flickered around the surrounding foliage. Was my job something I should be talking about outside of the village? I mean… all ninja work with secrets but my job entailed extracting secrets which means I evidently end up knowing things of value… or at least enemy ninja might assume so… "I have to know stuff about different people".
My explanation did not seem to satisfy Sasuke as the corners of his lips twitched in their downward arc. "It's the silent assassin part I'm not looking forward to", I continued. If I didn't the conversation would've died completely. "So, what do you think? Any ideas on how to survive this asshole?"
Sasuke scoffed unattractively. Too bad Sakura wasn't standing nearby to hear it. "Just stay out of the way", Sasuke said as he snapped my bingo book shut. "You'll be fine". He said in an unempathetically flat voice as he shoved the book back into my hands.
Snorting, I gripped my book as Sasuke stalked off; heading to join Naruto in the front. "Only if I'm not the one who is silently killed first", I snarked at his retreating back before going through the juggling act to return my book to my pack. Well, that was a waste of effort. I was hoping at the bare minimum to be given some sort of game plan. Other than rallying the troops the only plans I was coming up with were either to kill Tazuna myself or run away. Both, if successful, would make me a traitor. And there would still be painful consequences even if either of those plans failed. Honestly, the option with the lowest amount of risk was to 'die an honorable death' just like what was preached at the academy.
"Something's there!" Naruto exclaimed at the same moment I returned my pack to rest securely on my back. A kunai knife sailed through the air and crashed through a bush before ending its flight by impaling itself on a tree trunk blocked from our view.
Great. I grumbled in my head as I reached for a kunai and broadened my stance; bending my knees. In front of me, Sakura fell into a similar stance with the bridge builder stationed behind her and Sasuke pulled out a weapon of his own. The timing of this sucked.
Where are you? My eyes danced up and down, left and right as I tried to pick up on any indication of Haku's and Zabuza's presence. Kakashi charged forward a few feet; placing himself between Tazuna and Naruto. Ready to run to Naruto if help was required, but still in a position to uphold the mission if need be. His one visible eye narrowed as he concentrated.
Other than the coastal breeze ruffling a few hairs, everyone stood still; waiting and searching. And when nothing immediately happened, Tazuna bristled. "Don't scare me like that, you brat". He scolded Naruto; taking a tentative step out from behind Sakura.
Tazuna's rebuke appeared to calm Sakura as she stepped out of her defensive stance. "Naruto!" Sakura screeched her disgruntled feelings, "Stop being stupid".
Kakashi loosened too as he moved closer to the boys to investigate what caused Naruto to throw a kunai. Sasuke and I were the only ones who didn't break out of our caution. In fact, Sasuke's grip tightened on his knife with his free hand hovering over his kunai pouch in case he had need of another. As Kakashi bushed the branches of the bush out of the way to find Naruto's kunai, my eyes continued to dart around our surroundings. Where are you? Where are you?
Behind the bush was a terrified white rabbit trembling under the impaled kunai knife. Damn. This is just as I remembered… mostly. Giving a forewarning really didn't accomplish much, huh? Makes me wonder how much I would have to do to actually change things.
As Naruto gushed over the rabbit he almost killed, Kakashi's spine stiffened. "Get down", he yelled; tone commanding. At the same time, the birds stopped twittering and a sharp propellor-like noise started registering in my ears. Kakashi lunged toward Sakura and Tazuna; using his body to cover them. Sasuke did the same to Naruto; forcing the blond to let go of the rabbit as the two hit the ground.
In the back, I was on my own.
Rolling out of its path, a giant blade whirled through the air; sounding like a propellor before the sound ended abruptly after the sword impaled itself into the trunk of a tree. A man flickered into existence; standing on the sword's hilt as team seven and the bridge builder rose to their feet. I stayed crouched with a kunai in one hand and my feet ready to spring me forward in whatever direction I needed.
A direct assault wouldn't work. Running would only get me in more trouble. I thought as Kakashi approached the enemy nin as if they were old friends. "Zabuza Momochi, a cast-out ninja from the hidden mist. I thought you looked familiar". I could try to sabotage the fight. But any movement I made would be detected. Especially before the fighting even started. And that's without considering Zabuza's second pair of eyes. My eyes danced over the branches high about our heads that surrounded us. Where are you, Haku? Could that be how I sabotaged things? Call out some bogus statement about how I sensed another presence lurking in the trees?
… No, better not. I had no chakra-sensing ability that was greater than my rank and would have no way to back up such a claim if ever asked. So… how do I play this?
Like a fizzing soda bottle that was just opened, Naruto moved to charge into action; his hands balled into fists at his sides. But an arm shot out to stop him in his path. "Sasuke!" Naruto complained.
But Sasuke wasn't listening. His eyes were on his teacher as Kakashi slowly, almost dramatically adjusted his headband to reveal his hidden eye.
"The Sharingan eye", was the first thing Zabuza said. His voice was deep and gruff; as if he rarely used it. Sasuke flinched at the name as Zabuza glanced over his shoulder; staring intently at Kakashi. "Right? I remember hearing about you too, Kakashi Hatake. Sorry, but you'll have to hand over the bridge builder".
Gasping at the implication, Sakura clenched a hand close to her chest as she shifted closer to Tazuna. "Manji formation", Kakashi murmured over his shoulder as he finished adjusting his headband. "Work together and stay out of this fight", he gave his orders. "Quickly".
Neither Sasuke nor Naruto moved; too fascinated as they got their first look at Kakashi's stolen red eye. In response, Zabuza turned completely on his sword to face us as the air started to thicken around us as a sheet of mist begin to set in. This was bad. I thought as I rose out of my crouch. Losing visibility was always bad. Maybe I could distract for a little while. Fold off the technique long enough for Kakashi to get a leg up.
"I have a question" I interrupted and shot my kunai-free hand up into the air. Just like I used to do in the academy when I wanted to annoy Iruka-Sensei.
"Rion, what are you doing?" Sakura hissed at me as Zabuza's eyes briefly flashed in our direction. Because by calling attention to myself, I also directed the attention onto them.
I tried not to let my nerves show as I stared at the rouge ninja. "Why haven't you killed us yet?" Zabuza tilted his head to the side as Naruto sputtered. "I mean, you are known for your silent assassination techniques. Yet throwing your sword at us like it was a boomerang was a bit loud. So, did you reveal yourself on purpose? Or are you losing your hearing in your old age?"
"Rion!" Sakura hissed again; her voice tremoring.
"Sorry to disappoint", Zabuza drawled. Seemingly unimpressed by this interruption. But at least the mist wasn't getting thicker. From the front, Kakashi hadn't turned away from Zabuza, however; Sasuke and Naruto were leaning closer to him. Both of their faces had lines of deep concentration etched in. Good. Hopefully, he was giving them more directions. "But don't worry", Zabuza continued. "You and your friends won't be alive much longer".
I needed to keep talking. I needed to give Kakashi as much time as I could to plan and organize. "But that doesn't answer my question", I complained as I lowered my arm. "At least satisfy my curiosity before you kill me. Are you going deaf? Or does silence have a different definition to you than it does to most people?"
I was awarded with a dead stare from our opponent as Sakura glared at me. "Stop insulting him!" she ordered; not even trying to be discreet.
"Huh?" I said to myself. "No response. I guess that does answer my question. Losing your facilities suck, doesn't it old man?" I yelled at Zabuza; cupping my kunai-free hand over my mouth just to be extra obnoxious. "Say, Zabuza! Maybe you should check to make sure this is the bridge builder you're after. I know old people tend to forget a lot of stuff. Probably best to check before you accidentally kill the wrong person".
The mist was starting to thicken again. Kakashi must have noticed it too. "Oi", he said loudly, bringing the attention back to him. "Get into formation. That's an order". Naruto and Sasuke obeyed; spring backward to flank Tazuna's sides; determination set in.
"Someone needs to teach your brats some manners", Zabuza told Kakashi as he squatted on the sword's hilt; reaching down, he wrapped one of his hands around the hilt.
Sakura stood in the middle with Tazuna behind her and Naruto and Sasuke on each of her sides. I stood behind Tazuna. Together, the four of us boxed the bridge builder in; protecting every angle. Each of us with a kunai poised and ready. The mist kept getting thicker and thicker; nearly blocking out the sun entirely.
Zabuza moved. I couldn't see how; standing as I was. But I could hear. Metal clanged against metal. And I could feel it. Chakra swirled all around us as it ebbed and flowed as Kakashi and Zabuza met head on… That was different, right? I couldn't remember.
"What's the plan?" I whispered to the others as the sounds of a fight continued.
"What plan?" Sakura whispered back before either Naruto or Sasuke could reply.
"Kakashi-Sensei wants us to stay together", Sasuke explained. "He wants us to move further into the woods. Far away from the water as possible".
"But what about Kakashi-Sensei?" Sakura asked. "We'll be sitting ducks without him".
Exhaling through my nose, I took a moment before saying, "Kakashi-Sensei won't have to hold back if we're out of the way". It was a guess on my part. But I felt like it made sense. In this fight, Zabuza didn't have to worry about collateral damage. If he killed a few genin to get to the bridge builder, it didn't matter. While Kakashi was tasked with making sure all of us made it out alive. In other words, Zabuza had an advantage. "But staying together is going to be difficult in this fog", I pointed out.
"We'll just have to be careful", Sasuke said.
At the same time, Naruto interrupted. "Hey, Hey, Hey!" he repeated until we were listening to him. "The fighting stopped. Listen!"
And he was right. While the strong sensation of chakra was still there, the clanging sounds of metal were not. Did someone win? Or did someone slip away?
"What does that mean?" Tazuna asked. As if we were supposed to know.
"Larynx, Spine…" A disembodied voice started to call out. With all the mist, it was impossible to detect where it was coming from.
"What is that?" Sakura panicked.
"… Lungs… Liver".
"Man, he really does suck at the whole silent thing", I mumbled. "Hey, old man! Listing off organs and major arteries is not what silent means!" I yelled.
Both Tazuna and Sakura shushed me before I even finished talking. "Don't yell like that. He'll figure out where we are". Sakura stated shrilly.
"He already knows", Sasuke counted; voice grim. And of course, Zabuza knew. Because we hadn't moved.
"… jugular…"
Soon it wasn't just chakra we were feeling, but a suffocating amount of killing intent. It made it difficult to breathe. But I managed. Widening my stance, I pushed chakra to circulate through my system; as if purging any foreign entities. Thank you, Anko for all the times you subjected me to killing intent in the name of training. The rest of team seven wasn't as capable of shaking it off. I can feel Sasuke and Naruto quaking under the intensity from my left and right. From behind me, I can hear Sakura's teeth chattering. Crap. This was how Zabuza would manage to get past us; with them trapped in their own fear.
"…..Subclavian artery, Kidneys….."
I had to… maybe if I…. With my weapon-free hand, I reached to my left and clasped a hand onto Sasuke's arm. He flinched at the contact but was too frozen to lash out. I'd never done this before. Success was unlikely. But I had to try. Having at least one person with his head on straight than being forced to handle this alone. Besides, Naruto's chakra was disruptive enough, he could probably shake himself out of his feeling after a while.
Flaring my chakra, I pushed it into Sasuke's system. Or rather, I smacked Sasuke with it, because I had no idea how to infusion someone with chakra. As a living organism, Sasuke had his own chakra coils. So, it wasn't like pushing Chakra into a kunai to make it more dangerous. Nor was it like feeding it into a paper bomb to activate it.
"…Heart ..."
I didn't know if my attempt had the desired effect or not until Sasuke started to react. I could feel him twisting under my arm; moving. Instinct had me letting go. And just in time. Grabbing hold of Tazuna, Sasuke yanked him away as I spun on my heel. My weaponless hand kept my balance, while I stabbed with the other. Naruto gasped and Sakura yelped as my blade plunged easily into a shirtless back. Too easily.
A second flare of chakra, far greater than mine, broke most of the heavy atmosphere; dissolving the heavy mist in the process. We could see each other once again. Sasuke continued to pull Tazuna away from Zabuza. Sakura scurried to join them. While Naruto jumped back in a different direction to create distance. As water started to leak out of Zabuza, right where I had stabbed him; I jumped back too. Heading in Naruto's direction. And good thing I did. Because as soon as I stood side by side with Naruto, the person I stabbed dissolved into water and another Zabuza could be seen not far behind.
"Just a cone", I panted as Kakashi intercepted. He must have been the one to dissolve the fog. That's the only way I could make sense of it.
"Kakashi-Sensei!" Naruto cheered from the sidelines as Kakashi stood behind the demon of the mist; a kunai pressed against Zabuza's neck.
"This is the end", Kakashi stated calmly and coolly. Except it wasn't.
Just like the first, the Zabuza Kakashi had pinned dispersed into water and soaked the ground by Kakashi's feet. "Impressive", Zabuza admitted to Kakashi as the real him (I'm assuming) came up behind him as a blur, his sword ready. "You copied my water clone jutsu without me knowing. But it won't be enough". Zabuza swung.
All Kakashi could do was duck; avoiding being split into two. But that left him open. Twisting, Zabuza aimed a kick for Kakashi. This time, he couldn't dodge and Kakashi became airborne from the force behind the attack.
"Kakashi-Sensei!" Sakura yelled.
Predicting his trajectory with my eyes, I stared at the nearby river. The water! That's how I could change this fight.
As Zabuza poised his sword again; planning on getting to Kakashi before he landed, I ran. Not away like my instincts were begging me to do. But around. Around Naruto. Around Zabuza. Chakra made it so I could get to my interception point on time. Chakra helped me jump from the ground to a tree trunk and then into the air to get me to the correct height. Just in time.
Zabuza paused mid-swing as he noticed something scattered on the ground. Some trap of Kakashi's, I guess. But it was enough to slow him down and I needed that. My body slammed into Kakashi's. Luckily, my speed was enough to change Kakashi's direction. And instead of falling into the water, he fell on the muddy bank on his side.
"Pathetic", Zabuza sneered as he jumped into the water.
"Kakashi-Sensei", Sakura cried again. This time her voice stained in relief.
As Naruto sputtered. "Rion! What the hell are you doing?"
I ignored them both as I scrambled to my feet. My hand dived into my kunai holster to pull out another knife as Kakashi did the same. "Get back", Kakashi ordered as we faced the water; waiting. "Stick to the plan and stay away from the water".
That sounded like a good idea to me. So, I started inching away. But not before saying, "You should listen to your own advice, Kakashi-Sensei. Stay out of the water. Unless you have something that is stronger than water". I was hinting at something.
Something I believe Kakashi picked up on when he spared me a glance over his shoulder. The action gave me a good look at his Sharingan; causing a shiver to shoot down my spine at the unnatural hue of it. "I got it covered", he assured. It was the friendliest thing he ever said to me.
Nodding once, I jumped back to make my retreat faster. In the time it took for my small intervention to happen, team seven and Tazuna had come together. "Why did you do that?" Sakura demanded to know from her position guarding Tazuna the moment I was close enough. "You just got in the way!"
"Let's head out", I said; directing my words to the boys. "Kakashi-Sensei wants us to stay away from the water".
"But we can't just leave him to fight alone", Naruto argued as he gestured wildly to the river where Kakashi stood at the ready.
As we talked, Zabuza began to rise from the water with chakra swirling all around him and causing waves in the water he was now standing on. At the sight, Naruto became distracted. "How is he doing that?" He wanted to know.
Without his fingers getting tangled together, Zabuza's hands started flying as he formed hand signs. Ox. Monkey. Hare…
"We need to go", I said, moving closer to Tazuna and Sakura to push them in the direction I wanted. "Preferably to higher ground".
"We can't just abandon our Sensei!" Naruto disagreed.
Rat. Boar. Bird. Ox. Horse. Zabuza kept going. Now, Kakashi was forming hand signs too. Except, his were different. Monkey. Dragon. Rat.
"We don't have time for this", I growled as both Tazuna and Sakura barely budged.
"We stay", Sasuke said. "It doesn't make sense to run. Without Kakashi, he can just pick us off one by one". Which was a good point, but he didn't know what was coming. Stay away from water. Why was that difficult to understand? "Our odds are better if we protect the bridge builder here and help Kakashi-Sensei any way we can".
"Um… I agree with Sasuke", Sakura said, supposedly having found her courage.
"Shocker", I ground out as I glared at the pink-haired girl.
But before it could turn confrontation between me and my fellow kunoichi, Sasuke broke in. "Manji formation", he directed. Immediately, Naruto and Sakura slid into their place around the bridge builder. Grumbling unkind things under my breath, I reluctantly did the same. "If Kakashi-Sensei needs us, Naruto and I will fight. Sakura and Rion with protect Tazuna". Sasuke decided as he too fell into formation.
"Now, you're talking!" Naruto agreed as everyone turned their attention to the fight on the river. Everyone except me, seeing as my position in the Manji formation was to protect Tazuna's back. Instead of watching the race of who could finish weaving their hand signs first, my eyes returned to searching through the tree branches above our heads. Where are you Haku?
I knew the moment Kakashi and Zabuza were done. Zabuza exclaimed, "Water style: Water Dragon Jutsu!" You know, another very non-silent way to show off power.
At the same time, Kakashi announced, "Lightening Release: Chidori!" The sound of high-pitched twittering competed against the sound of roaring rushing water.
"Wow", Naruto vocalized as he watched the whole thing.
My eyes continued their search. Haku. Haku. Where art thou, Haku? But there was nothing. At least, as far as I could detect. Not even a sliver of movement.
"Of course", Sakura breathed as the twittering soundly quickly overpowered the rushing water. "Water conducts electricity", she reasoned.
"And Zabuza is standing in water", Sasuke finished for her.
Giving up, I twisted around, to glance towards the fight without breaking formation completely. Despite standing still and still like a rod of iron, Zabuza's whole body trembled as his water dragon jutsu canceled out and rained down around him. Only making the tremors worse. Kakashi crouched on the bank; one hand was held in a hand sign close to his face while the other was plunged into the water with little bits of like jumping out. Kind of like when a flame shoots off little sparks. At least that was one plan that actually worked.
"And that would be the end", Kakashi declared as he canceled his jutsu and Zabuza collapsed.
Naruto broke formation first. Jumping in the air with his fist raised, he yelled, "You're the best Kakashi-Sensei. That was amazing. Believe it!" In the water, without chakra to hold him afloat; Zabuza slowly began to sink.
Sasuke, Sakura, and I followed next. Moving to stand in front of Tanuza and next to Naruto, Tazuna asked, "Is he dead?" His voice was tentative. As if he couldn't let himself hope it was true.
"Yeah", Kakashi answered as he turned his back on the sinking body to approach. "He won't be bothering us again".
I waited until Zabuza's body was entirely underwater before I started searching the trees again. Where was Haku? From what I remembered, he wouldn't just let Zabuza die like this.
But there were no sudden appearances from the mysterious masked ninja. The others breathed a sigh of relief. I couldn't. No Haku. What did that mean?
"Good work everyone", Kakashi said once he was standing in front of us. He was back to his lazy posture with slouched shoulders and one of his hands resting in his pocket. "Now let's get Tazuna home".
… There's no way… This didn't feel right. Although looking at everyone else, they clearly didn't have the same foreboding feeling. Was Zabuza truly alone?