A deal
Zabuza clenched his teeth and cursed internally. Not only that the jobs which he did with Haku became more and more inscrutable, no now he had to fight also with Ninjas from Kiri. Few had been serious opponents for him up to now, however, the group of two Jonin and a brat not much older than Haku himself, were surprisingly good. And then there was still the fact that the nipper possessed one of the famous Kirigakure swords and knew how to use it. At first he didn't believe that the boy with the grey-blue hair could handle the sword, which was much too big. Obviously he lacked the appearance and self-confidence. He seemed even more shy and reserved than Sakura before she had gotten used to him and Haku.
Again Zabuza dodged a sword stroke and the following water attack, which would have washed him away several feet, had he not escaped by a hair's breadth. He didn't know the sword boy, but he knew the other ninja. He was considered a hero of Kirigakure and his presence made it harder for Zabuza than necessary. His fog and his silent death technique was of no use at all, if one of his opponents was a sensor type and would know exactly where he was in the fog. With his own sword he swung out, swung it sideways away from him and tore the would-be swordsman from his feet. His gaze wandered to Haku, who was taking care of the other ninja, but the fight had been going on for a while and even though Haku was fast, had an advantage over the other with his Kekkei Genkai, he still lacked the endurance and experience of a Jonin. Long the boy wouldn't be able to take this anymore.
Once again Zabuza dodged a blow, but cursed inwardly shortly afterwards when he noticed his arm going numb. Through his own inattention and concern for Haku, Ao had managed to get close enough to him. His stolen byakugan was a pure nuisance and Ao must have blocked one of his tenketsus in his arm, which was responsible for his numb arm.
"Lucky shot." He snorted and took his sword in his other hand before a sound of pain was heard and saw Haku being hurled several meters backwards against a tree. However, he could not keep his attention on Haku for long when he was attacked again by the two ninjas. Again he swung out with his sword, hitting the young swordsman who crashed into the next tree and slid it down unconscious.
"Shannoro" sounded through the forest and out of the corner of his eye Zabuza could see a pink shock of hair. His gaze flitted towards the new person and in his eyes you could read in astonishment when he realized that Sakura had taken on the last Jonin Haku had taken care of. He could still see the tip of their sais disappearing into the Jonin's body before he had to dodge another water attack and shortly after that he felt a dull thud on his head. His vision blurred and something wet ran down the back of his head. Cool metal pressed against his neck and Zabuza cursed his inattention before the darkness welcomed him.
Sakura didn't know what to feel when she heard the familiar metallic sound of weapons colliding. She felt her chest tighten and a short tremor went through her body. She was alone, had no support and logically, it would be best if she just went on and let the fight, fight be. But something in Sakura made her stop. Something inside her told her to follow the sounds of fighting even though her logical mind was screaming at her to leave. Torn between her gut feeling and her mind, she decided to look and follow her feeling. If she did it skilfully, she might get a glimpse of the fighters and if she realized that it had nothing to do with her, she could still disappear, as long as she was not discovered.
She nodded to herself with determination. She could do it, she just had to remain undetected and maybe she didn't have to intervene and make herself noticed. Deeply breathing in and out, the young Kunoichi focused on her breathing to calm her nerves. Then she concentrated on her chakra.
It was one of the first chakra exercises Zabuza had shown her was it essential for survival. Suppressing chakra was an art in itself, which most shinobis only learned when they were Chunin or Jonin. But Zabuza had quickly explained to her that she would find death faster if she could be discovered and found outside in the field without any trouble, just because she had not suppressed her chakra. The technique could make the difference between life and death if you were permanently on the run, at least that's what Zabuza had explained to her, and Sakura was far too much in his debt to be responsible for being discovered. It took her several attempts to get the hang of it, but it took a lot of energy and concentration to contain her chakra to a certain size, so that on the outside she had the same amount of chakra as a deer or rabbit. The technique itself didnt consume any chakra, but it was still exhausting and made her sweat regularly, especially when she tried to suppress her chakra during her training sessions. Several times she had collapsed from exhaustion on her travels and she hated herself for her lack of stamina. Even when Zabuza assured her she was making good progress, it was not enough for her. At some point she must have been able to show her gratitude by showing Zabuza and Haku that she wasnt a waste of time and that her rescue was not in vain. With her current state she was far from being useful to the two ninjas in her eyes. But for what she wanted to do now, her skills would hopefully be enough.
With slowly emerging self-confidence she went through the single steps she needed to suppress her chakra and was only satisfied when it had the volume of a rabbit. Then she silently set off, following the sounds of battle. Deeper into the forest and she used the bushes and trees to protect herself from possible glances. Her hair and clothes were still conspicuous in the deep, green forest, but at the moment there was nothing she could do about it and she had to make the best of her present situation. The ground under her feet was soft from the rain of the past days and Sakura had to be very careful not to make any noise that could give her away. The deeper she entered the undergrowth, the stronger the earthy, moist smell around her became, of churning earth that had otherwise been untouched.
The noises came closer and closer, and at some distance she could make out some movements, in a lighter place in the forest. No clearing per sé, but also not the typical dense forest soil she had fought through on her way here.
She sought shelter between trees and behind smaller bushes, so that she could follow the action unnoticed. Carefully she crawled further ahead until she could determine exactly who was fighting there on the square and what she saw made her gasp in shock and freeze. Haku and Zabuza were fighting and they were outnumbered. Not that this had to mean much, but Sakura could see how Haku was fighting his opponent and even Zabuza, who had to fight two at the same time, had looked better before. According to this their opponents had to be more than just good and at least the rank of experienced Chunin. The realization made Sakura swallow. Back in Wave, Zabuza had taken on Kakashi, a Jonin from Konoha, her former sensei, and they were pretty much the same in terms of strength. Haku had done well against Sasuke and Naruto, but they were also just Genin. Although exceptionally talented Genin with above average chakra and techniques.
Watching her two rescuers struggle with the ninjas made her heart race with fear. Impossible she could do anything, she wasn't Naruto or Sasuke. She had taken her training seriously for just over a month and was way too far behind. She could never stop these ninjas and even less could she be of any use to Haku and Zabuza! She was still much too weak for that.
Damn, how she hated to be so weak. It cost her all her willpower not to let go of the suppression technique while she followed the fight in her mind and hated herself for her weakness. 'You can't just sit here and do nothing Sakura! We owe them our lives! We have to at least try to help them and if only there is time,' the voice inside her head sounded and Sakura almost flinched with shock. "Damn Inner, you scared me. I almost forgot about you. But what are we going to do? I only have the academy jutsus and a little kenjutsu, what Zabuza showed me. I'm nowhere near able to take them on." A sigh was heard in Sakura's head. 'So work with what we've got. We have the advantage that they don't know we're here. Use that. We've been good at planning for a reason. Go ahead and use your head!’
At these words, Sakura opened her eyes and stared forward without fixing anything in particular. Of course! How could she forget that, she was good at planning. That had saved her head in Wave when she... No, she couldn't think about what her plan had led to, she had survived. That alone counted. All she needed was a cool head and a plan to help Haku and Zabuza. She'd still be able to do that. With renewed courage, she fixed on Haku and his opponent and thought. Time for a plan and quickly.
Lacking much time and material, her mind was working at full speed as she searched for a suitable way to postpone the fight in favor of Haku and Zabuza. For a few moments she retreated from the fighting, created three doubles of herself and sent them to the other corners of the battlefield with ninja wire and exploding seals. She could only hope that the enemies were too busy with the two Mistninjas to notice what she was up to. A few minutes later she was back at her observation post and opened her eyes in panic when she realized that Haku could not avoid the next attack of his opponent and was thrown backwards against a nearby tree with a strong blow. The stranger ninja used the time to make another frontal attack on the boy, which would surely end deadly if Haku was not able to counter. Without further ado, Sakura's body reacted. Drawn with her sais, she jumped out of her hiding place at the last moment and put all her strength into the attack.
"Shannaro!" She had no time to think when her blades penetrated the skin of the stranger ninja and she unbalanced him with her weight and the momentum of her attack. She had aimed for the lungs or the heart during her attack and she could only hope that she had hit. Now that she had lost the advantage of surprise, she would certainly not score another hit like that. With the impact on the ground, she pressed her blades even harder into the body of the enemy, causing him to spit blood. Disgusted, Sakura turned up her nose and jumped back, right next to Haku, who looked at her with astonished eyes.
"Sakura?" His voice was so soft and low, she had hardly heard it. Without taking her attention from the ninja lying on the floor, she looked at the boy from the corners of her eyes.
Haku was more than just worn out and his clothes torn in many places. Scratches and bruises were visible on his otherwise flawless skin. Even if he had fought, he certainly hadn't fought with the intention of killing his opponent. That much she had learned about the alleged hunter. He served Zabuza and would kill for him if he had to. But if he had the choice, he would always refrain from doing so. He was a good soul and Sakura wanted and couldn't let it break him if he was forced to end a life. It was enough that she was haunted by the dead and her deeds. Haku didn't have to suffer from that, too. Not if she could prevent it.
"Don't worry, Haku. I'll do the part. You..." She never got a chance to speak any further when she heard a body hit the floor and with big eyes full of panic she looked at the lifeless body of Zabuza and the two foreign ninjas standing around him.
"Zabuza-sama!" she exclaimed, idiotically, because now she was sure of the attention of the two ninjas. Both looked from her to their fallen colleague and back again. Disbelief in the eyes of the younger and a certain curiosity in the eyes of the older, but Sakura couldn't care less, all she saw was the lifeless body of Zabuza.
"You'll regret this." Sakura didn't think, had she done it, she would have pushed herself out of the blast radius, but the sight of Zabuza made her forget all logic and when she pulled a wire, a web of blast notes fell over their heads, which her doubles had stretched with the help of ninja wire. "Kai!" made her activate the individual seals and the force of the explosions tore her off her feet.
Her body ached, her head boomed and an unpleasant beeping could be heard in her ears. The air around her was dry and dusty. Her throat was scratchy and it almost felt as if her lungs were on fire. Moaning, Sakura straightened up. A coughing fit followed and the taste of iron settled over her tongue. Spit mixed with blood was found on the floor below her, but Sakura didn't pay any attention. Her clogged eyes searched the shattered surroundings. The force of the explosions was stronger than she had thought. Trees were split and torn from the ground. Small craters had dug themselves into the earth under the individual seals, the ground was churned up, branches and bushes lay wildly mixed up in the newly created clearing. Her eyes landed on a person, her previous opponent, impaled by a branch he hung between the broken branches of a tree and Sakura went sick at the sight. Quickly she averted her gaze and searched further. At some distance to her right she spotted Haku's shock of hair and with shaky legs the Haruno straightened up and settled down next to the boys. He breathed - thanks to Kami, and while she made sure nothing changed in Haku's condition, she continued to search for Zabuza. She found his lifeless figure lying under a small pile of bushes and branches. Just as she was about to stand up, she heard the crack of wood and her head shot in the direction of the sound. The ninja who had knocked out Zabuza had survived the explosions and was single-mindedly on his way to her rescuer. Perhaps to finish what he had started. She couldn't let that happen! Without suppressing her chakra, she let it flow faster through her body and ran. She could not allow the foreign ninja to reach Zabuza before her. With an iron will she spurred herself to run even faster and came to a halt with outstretched arms just in time before Zabuza.
"Stop! I won't let you go anywhere near Zabuza-sama!" Sakura trembled and it was anything but easy for her to stand on her legs. She was suicidal, clearly, but she couldn't let Zabuza be harmed any more. If she had to give her life for that, then so be it. At least then she had paid her debt by doing everything in her power to save him.
Unimpressed, Ao stared down at the young girl. She couldn't possibly be much older than Chōjūrō and she had come to the aid of Zabuza's boy, even taking out his colleague. Luck and surprise were probably her factors, at least when he looked at the girl like that. But what he didn't understand was the connection she had with the boy and the missing nin. She wore no headband, no symbol that connected her to a village or clan. She was according to that no ninja on the run, but she also didn't belong to Kiri. He would remember if he had seen somebody with pink hair.
"Out of my way. I have no business with you. The man behind you is a wanted ninja from my village, and it is my duty to eliminate him in the name of Kirigakure. What's a girl like you doing with a criminal like him anyway?" Unclear what he should think of the girl, he observed her reaction to his words, but he couldn't figure it out either. She didn't back off, didn't make room for him. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and strained her body, ready to defend the man behind her with everything she could muster.
"I owe Zabuza-sama my life, and that's why I won't let you kill him! Besides, shouldn't you ninjas from Kirigakure take care of your civilians who had to flee because of some rebellion? Save your own people instead of wasting your resources chasing missing ninjas." Okay, the little one had guts, but that wasn't something Ao would approve of. Did it make people do stupid things. Her words and the knowledge she shared were something else. How did she know about the fled villagers and the rebellion? And what did she mean by rescue? Were any of them in danger? Those who served under the new Mizukage were safe in Kirigakure. Did she have contact with the other group? If so, why did she think they were right and needed help? Ao narrowed his eyes slightly.
"How do you know about the rebellion, girl? And of what people do you speak. All the loyal citizens of Kirigakure live there, and need not be saved." The girl in front of him flinched at his words, but he did not feel pity for his harsh tone. Her gaze reflected uncertainty, as if she was weighing up whether and what she could and should tell him.
"I was hired by them." he heard her answer after a short time and that made him listen up.
"Hired"? Hired for what?" This was getting more and more confusing. However, he didn't like the expression on the girl's face when she looked at him after looking behind her for Zabuza. What exactly was she planning?
"I will tell what I know, in return you won't harm Haku or Zabuza-sama." That little pest wanted to fuck with him, right? She was in no position to make demands. He could easily take her out and then deal with Zabuza. He could certainly get her to talk when he took her to Kirigakure, but at the same time she was just a child, a civilian, although she must have had some talent after what he had seen for a short time.
"Listen, kiddo, you're in no position to make demands." He didn't get anywhere, the girl snorted and crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"You want to know where I got my knowledge and what I was hired for. Nothing is for free, Shinobi-san, and I said I wouldn't let you kill Zabuza-sama." Inside, Ao bubbled and almost stared down at the girl.
"Fine. Zabuza and his appendage will not be killed for the time being, but I won't let them run free either. And you will come too. Depending on what you know, the decision will be made. But don't think you can cheat me. I have no problem taking you out like the other two." A quick nod was all he received and exhausted the girl sank to her knees in front of him. This could be fun. But now he first had to find Chōjūrō and get his colleague from the tree and seal his body in a scroll. This was certainly not how Ao had imagined his mission.