Of Sacrifices, Demons, and Thugs
-Of Sacrifices, Demons, and Thugs-
"Go on, finish it. Kill me!" Haku presses again, making Naruto take a step back. "Why do you hesitate? I thought you wanted to be a mighty warrior?" He asks.
Naruto grits his teeth in frustration. "That's not what it's about! Do you really believe that's all there is to it? Just fighting and killing till there's one man left standing?!" The blond replies angrily before adding, "There's a lot more to being a Shinobi than that! And there are other ways of showing your strength than just by beating somebody in battle!"
"I've had a feeling all along.. from the first moment we met in the woods. We're a lot alike." Haku answers lightly, making Naruto's eyes widen. "I'm sure you know what I mean. I'm only sorry that it must be your hand that is tainted with my unworthy blood." Haku adds.
"Sure about this? And you're positive it's the only way?" Naruto asks, staring at the boy with slightly narrowed eyes.
"Yes." Haku replies with finality.
Naruto grits his teeth again and tilts his head down with closed eyes. "The weird thing is, if we met in another time and place... I think that maybe we could've been friends." The blond informs.
Amaya's watery eyes widen. 'Is he really going to kill him?!' She questions as Naruto's eyes fly open. He reaches for a kunai and charges towards Haku once more.
"Yes, that's right. Hold fast to your dreams." Haku murmurs quietly.
"This is for Sasuke! Because he also had a dream!" Naruto yells as he charges, making Amaya glance back down to the Uchiha sadly.
Naruto readied his kunai and gave a loud war cry. 'Thank you, Naruto. Strike true.' Haku thought to himself, closing his eyes.
"At last. I think this blasted fog is lifting." Tazuna comments in slight relief as he looks around. "Hm?"
"Look, they're standing still, like they're squaring off." Sakura prompts as the two look at the two figures in the distance.
"Yeah? I can't see a thing." Tazuna states with squinted eyes.
"Which one of them is Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asks curiously, letting out a gasp when one of the figures moves forward. "Ones moving!"
"Huh?!" Haku grunts in surprise as his eyes shoot open.
At the same time, Naruto aims to strike with his kunai but Haku blocks the attack by swiftly grabbing the blond's wrist. Naruto makes a noise of confusion prompting Haku to speak.
"Sorry, Naruto. But change of plans." He murmurs, glancing in the direction where the two Jounin were last seen with narrowed eyes. Making hand signs with his free hand, he adds, "I'm not ready to die quite yet." He then disappears, leaving Naruto to stumble forward a little.
Kakashi sprints towards Zabuza, the crackling sound of his jutsu resonating throughout the area. 'Is this the end?' Zabuza thought to himself, the reality of the situation becoming more apparent.
Just as Kakashi is about to hit Zabuza with his Lightning Blade, an ice mirror appears and blood flies into the air.
The force of the attack is so strong, it sends a strong gust of air in all directions. Forcing the rest of the mist away.
***
"What the devil?!" Tazuna yells out as Sakura gasps, the two trying to hold their footing while blocking the wind with their hands.
***
Both Kakashi and Zabuza stare wide eyed as blood drops to the ground. Kakashi's ninkin disperse as Haku coughs up a little blood before tightly gripping ahold of Kakashi's arm. "Za..bu..za..."
The addressed lets out a dark chuckle. "So my future is all used up, huh?" He asks rhetorically before laughing again while adding, "Wrong again Kakashi."
Kakashi didn't reply as he stared back into Haku's equally widened and lifeless eyes.
Amaya and Naruto stare in surprise at the spot where Haku was once standing moments prior. "Huh?! What?! Where'd he go?!" The blond asks aloud as he looks around. "Huh? Hey! The fogs lifting! Wait.. is that him?" He adds before focusing on three figures in the distance.
The blond begins to run towards the three, but slowly comes to a stop as he takes in the situation. "What... I don't get it, what the hecks going on here?!" Naruto asks aloud, his head spinning in confusion.
***
"Isn't that.. the young man in the mask?" Tazuna asks, Sakura doesn't reply as the two stare at the three in equal surprise.
***
"The boy threw himself in front of my attack. He saved your worthless life at the cost if his own." Kakashi spat, his eyes reverting back to normal as he glared at the rogue.
"Well done, Haku." Zabuza praised with a chuckle before he unsheathed his sword, ready to swing.
"Kakashi-sensei, watch out!" Sakura yells.
'He'd hack right through the boy to cut me down?!' Kakashi thought to himself disgusted and in slight disbelief.
"I knew I'd found a treasure when I found you, boy! You've not only given me my life, but Kakashi's as well!" Zabuza yells out, completely bloodthirsty.
Kakashi tugged at his hand to move away but Haku's grip was too strong. Seeing no other choice, Kakashi grabs the boy and jumps away, right as Zabuza swings his sword.
"Not bad for having a corpse in your arms." Zabuza mocks gruffly.
"You'll pay for that!" Naruto yells, briefly catching everyones attention.
"No! Stay out of this, Naruto!" Kakashi yells before gently placing Haku's body on the ground. He stares at the boy for a moment before reaching out a hand to close his eyes. Looking back up, he glares at the rogue. "This is my battle! Zabuza's mine!"
Sakura looks in the blond's direction as Kakashi spoke, relieved to see at least one of her teammates okay. "Naruto?... Naruto! Over here! Naruto!" She yells catching the boy's attention.
'Sakura...' Naruto thought to himself with a sad sigh, guilt beginning to fill his being as he thought of the girl's infatuation with the Uchiha.
"So, you, Sasuke, and Amaya are alright?" Sakura asked as she waved one of her arms in the air.
Kakashi looked between the two, a dreadful feeling filled the pit of his stomach as he thought to the two Genin before focusing on the pinkette when she spoke. "What's wrong? Where is Sasuke and Amaya anyway?"
Naruto didn't reply, but his silence spoke volumes. "No..." Sakura murmured, her voice wavering.
"Sakura..." Kakashi began to speak but was cut off by Zabuza.
"Kakashi! I'd stay focused if I were you!" The rogue yells as he charges forward and attempts to swing his sword. Kakashi balances on his hands and swings his legs out, kicking Zabuza in the stomach, sending him stumbling back.
Tazuna stares between the two children before turning to the girl beside him. "Let me take you too them, Sakura. As long as we stay together you won't be disobeying your sensei's orders."
Sakura gives a small nod and grabs Tazuna's hand gently. "Thank you." The pinkette replies before the two take off running, passing Naruto in the process.
***
Amaya tensed up as she heard fast paced footsteps coming her way. Looking up, her blue eyes locked with emerald green and brown - both sets of orbs belonging to Sakura and Tazuna respectively.
The duos face showed slight signs of relief at the sight of the Minamoto, that is until their gazes finally took everything in.
Amaya's skin was littered in scrapes and deep abrasions, her clothes were torn and bloodied from the unseen battle and the dried tear tracks on her cheeks were proof enough that she had been crying at some point. However, what shattered the duo's hopes more than anything was the sight of Sasuke, whose head rested against the brunette's lap - face pale and body unmoving.
"S-Sakura..." The Minamoto stammered out quietly as the addressed dropped to her knees. The pinkette didn't reply, but instead reached out a hand and touched the boys face.
"Sasuke..." Sakura murmured, her eyes slowly filling up with tears.
Tazuna looks away from the three with gritted teeth before looking back as Sakura began talking. "His body's cold... This isn't one of his Genjutsu tricks, is it?"
This time it was Amaya's turn to look away as she felt the familiar burning sensation behind her eyes once more.
Tazuna watched the two with pity as he spoke, "Go on, you don't need to be brave on my account. Go ahead and let your feelings out, you two, it's alright."
Silence filled the air before Sakura's low murmurs broke it. "I was the best... Aced every test at the academy. The perfect student." She began solemnly, making Tazuna look at her curiously, as she continued. "Did you know there are more than one-hundred principles of shinobi conduct? I memorized every single one. I used to love it when they tested us on it. Gave me a chance to show off how smart I was. I remember so clearly, this one exam... They asked us to explain the twenty-fifth principle, I got it right of course." As the words leave her mouth, the pinkette's resolve crumbles and she breaks down into tears.
By this point Tazuna's eyes were watering and Amaya was trembling. "A shinobi never shows his feelings, no matter what the circumstances. Feelings are a weakness, that cloud his sense of judgement and weaken his sense of duty." The brunette spits out mockingly, reciting the principle for Tazuna so he'd understand Sakura's point. She then brings her hands up to her eyes in hopes of stopping the tears from falling, biting back a sob as she does so. "Doesn't matter if it's a parent, sibling, friend, or lover. Emotions are a weakness!"
As she hears the brunette speak, Sakura finally loses it and lays her head on Sasuke's stomach. "Sasuke...!" She sobs, tightly clutching the boy's shirt in her fists.
'To put such an unbearable burden on a young girls' shoulders... If that's the shinobi way, you can have it.' Tazuna thought to himself angrily, resting a hand gently on Amaya's head for comfort.
***
Kakashi and Zabuza's weapons clash again before they jump back. At this point, Zabuza has two kunai embedded into one of his arms, rendering it useless in the fight. His other, gripped onto the hilt of his sword tightly. 'Why... Why can't I keep up with him?!'
Kakashi stares at the hunched over Zabuza silently, not at all phased by the rogue's continuous attacks. Zabuza gets up and goest to attack again but Kakashi hits him in the face, sending him stumbling back. Before Zabuza can counter, Kakashi hits him again, knocking him back farther.
"I'll split you in half!" Zabuza spats with a growl before taking a swipe with his sword at the silver haired Jounin, who simply jumps back. The rogue then brings his sword down, leaving a deep crater in the ground as Kakashi moved away and appeared behind him.
"Look at you. You're falling apart. I knew you didn't have what it takes for the long haul." Kakashi states lowly as he gripped the back of Zabuza's neck.
"What did you say?!" Zabuza asks gruffly with narrowed eyes.
"You have no idea what real strength is." Kakashi replied simply before spinning two kunai in his hands, gripping them tightly. "Game over! You lose."
Zabuza uses his only useable arm and swings his sword around, Kakashi seeing what was about to happen, stabs the two kunai into Zabuza's arm. The rogue drops his sword, sending it scraping across the bridge. Kakashi then jumps away towards Naruto. "Now both of your arms are useless. What now? You can't even make hand signs."
***
Suddenly a man steps forward, stamping his cane lightly on the ground, he catches everyone's attention. He was short with a round stomach, wearing a business suit. He also had light colored hair with small round glasses sitting on the bridge of his nose. And from the look of things, the group of thugs and hired ninja standing behind him didn't bode well.
"Hm?" Kakashi hummed curiously, observing the newcomer and the group behind him.
"Did quite a number on you, didn't he Zabuza? You look like yesterday's Sashimi. I must say I'm disappointed." The man mocked, prompting the group behind him to laugh loudly.
"Gatō? I don't understand. What is all this? Why are you here and who are all of these these thugs you've brought with you?" Zabuza asked, turning his glare from Kakashi to the the man.
"Hmph, well you see there's been a slight change in plan. According to the new plan, you die right here on this bridge, Zabuza." The man, now known as Gatō, replies with a sneer.
"What?!" Zabuza growls, narrowing his eyes even more.
"That's right. You're too expensive. So, I've decided to take you off the payroll. Of course, even these thugs I've brought with me cost something, so if you could manage to slaughter a few of them before they take you down, I would appreciate it. Think you can manage that? Demon Ninja of the Mist?" Gatō mocks before adding, "Look at you. You look about as demonic as a wet kitten." As he said this, the thugs behind him laugh once more.
'There are so many of them! One rogue ninja was bad enough!' Naruto thought to himself as he stared at the thugs.
"Well, well, Kakashi. It would seem that our fight is at an end. Since I am no longer in Gatō's employ Tazuna is safe, we have no quarrel." Zabuza murmurs as he glances at the silver haired Jounin.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right." Kakashi replies as the two turn to look at Gatō.
The business man walks forward towards Haku's body. "That reminds me. You little punk! You grabbed me and nearly broke my arm!" He sneers as he nudges Haku's face with the toe of his shoe. "I've been meaning to repay you for that!" He informs before harshly kicking the boy's body, poking his face with the end of his cane. "I only wish he was alive to feel it." Gatō adds, slightly amused.
"Get away!" Naruto yells as he runs forward, however before he could get very far, Kakashi reached out and grabbed him. "Get away from him you scum!" Naruto yells again as he struggled in Kakashi's hold.
"Hey stop! Use your head." Kakashi orders sternly.
Naruto ignored him and turned to Zabuza, "Well what about you, Zabuza?! You gonna let him do that?!"
"Be quiet you fool. Haku's dead, what does it matter?" Zabuza spat, not turning to look at the blond.
"What?! You mean you can just stand there and watch him get treated like a dog?! You and Haku were together for years! Doesn't that mean anything?!" Naruto asked, getting more and more disgusted and frustrated with the rogue.
"You don't understand the way if the shinobi. I merely used him, just as Gatō used me." Zabuza answered before continuing, "Now it's over. His usefulness is at an end. The loss of his strength and skill yes, that means something to me. But the boy? Nothing."
"If you mean that then you're an even bigger rat than I thought!" Naruto growled angrily.
Kakashi places a hand on the blond's shoulder. "Okay, that's enough. Calm down, Naruto, he's not the enemy. Not right now." He states but is brushed off as Naruto knocks his hand away roughly.
"GAH! Shut up! As far as I'm concerned, he's enemy number one!" Naruto replies, pointing at Zabuza. He then continues, "Why you... You ungrateful... After everything he did for you! Haku lived for you! You were the most important thing the world to him! And he meant nothing to you?! Nothing at all?! While he was sacrificing everything for you, you never felt anything at all for him?!... And if I become stronger, does that mean I'll become as cold hearted as you are?! He threw his life away. And for what?! You and your dream?! You never let him have a dream of his own, but he didn't care. And you just toss him aside like he was nothing! A broken tool... Man that's so... so wrong!" By this point the blond had silent tears trailing down his cheeks, each word becoming harder to speak due to the sobs that were wanting to break lose.
"You talk to much." Zabuza replied quietly, making Naruto look up and see silent tears fall and hit the ground at the nins feet. "Your words cut deep. Deeper than any blade. While he fought you, his heart was breaking into. You see, Haku was always too soft and kind. He felt pain and sorrow and now.. curse him I feel it, too! And something else... I feel content that this is the way it ends." Looking up with tears streaming down his face, Zabuza grabs ahold and rips the bandages covering his mouth with his teeth.
"Huh?" Naruto asks as he stares at the nins back in confusion.
"Well? Cat got your tongue? Are you so surprised to discover that I'm human? Even shinobi are human. No matter how hard we try to escape that simple fact, we always fail. Well, at least, I have failed." Zabuza mused with a minuscule smile, revealing his extremely sharp teeth. "Boy, give me your kunai."
Naruto stares at the rogue cautiously for a moment before letting out a sigh. Reaching down to his weapons pouch, he pulls out a kunai and tosses it. "Here."
Zabuza turns slightly and catches the kunai skillfully in his mouth. He then turns to look at Gatō with a glare before he charges at the businessman.
Gatō, in return, let's out a small shriek and runs behind his thugs. "That's enough of this! Do it! Take him down!" He yells, making the group cheer loudly.
"He must be out of his mind! One against all of us? What's he thinking?" One thug grins cockily as Zabuza reaches him. Using the kunai, the rogue slashes through the man before jumping into the center of the group. Seeing their chance, some of Gatō's men attack, but Zabuza retaliates with various slashes and kicks.
Suddenly, one of the thugs stab Zabuza in the back with a spear, but the rogue keeps going until he breaks through the crowd, his eyes focused on the now feeling Gatō. "H-he's the devil!" Gatō exclaims as he looks back at the quickly approaching nin.
As he reaches the businessman, Zabuza uses the kunai in his mouth and stabs Gatō in the chest, however despite it being a deep wound it wasn't quite deep enough to kill. Zabuza grins viciously up at Gatō, his teeth still clenched around the handle of the kunai. However, that doesn't last long as some of the thugs stab him multiple times in the back with whatever weapons they had.
"You crazy fool. If you're so eager to join your friend, go ahead! But you're not taking me! Not this time!" Gatō exclaims as he backs away from the nin, holding the place where he was stabbed.
"I won't be joining Haku. Where he's gone, I cannot follow." Zabuza replies gruffly as he slightly raises up from his slouched position, walking slowly towards the businessman.
"Stay back! Stay back!" Gatō yells, backing up even more as Zabuza gets closer.
Zabuza continues walking until he's directly in Gatō's face. "We wouldn't be welcome where Haku's gone to! Hell's where we're going, Gatō! I can't think of a more fitting destination for a Demon Ninja, can you? I'm told there are demons down there of all shapes and sizes!" Zabuza informs with an almost crazed tone, making Gatō's eyes widen in fear. "Oh yes! I should fit right in! You on the other hand Gatō, I fear your in for a long and very painful eternity!" After saying this, Zabuza quickly leans down and pulls out the kunai he used before with his teeth, he then advances and quickly slashes at Gatō's abdomen numerous times. Once satisfied, he kicks the shorter male off the bridge, letting him fall to his death.
Zabuza then turns around, the look on his face making some of the thugs drop their weapons as he began to slowly walk towards them. Dropping the kunai as the crowd parts, he spots Haku and tries to walk to him. "Haku... So this is goodbye, at last. Not once did I ever thank you, Haku. Forgive me for that." He murmurs apologetically before falling to the ground, the sight making Naruto look away.
"Don't turn away." Kakashi mumbles lowly, gaining Naruto's attention.
"Huh?"
"When you live like a warrior, this is how it ends." Kakashi replies simply.
Naruto regards his sensei's words for a moment before looking back to Zabuza's body, a thoughtful expression on his face.
***
'W-where am I? Am I alive? Or...' Sasuke thought to himself, his thoughts slowly trailing off at the sound of sniffles and a girl's sobbing. 'Sakura? Can it be?... It is!' He thought again as his eyes opened. After blinking a few times, the blurriness slowly went away, revealing the crying pink haired girl. It was then he noticed something warm under his head. Looking directly up, he was surprised to find his head resting on Amaya's lap. The brunette, however, hadn't noticed his consciousness as she was focusing on something in the distance, but her quiet sniffles and tears proved that she was just as upset as Sakura.
Looking back down to the pinkette, Sasuke decided to speak. "Sakura... it's hard to breath with you on top of me..."
Amaya's head snapped to him immediately as Sakura jerked up from her position. "Sasuke!" The pinkette exclaimed in surprise as Amaya, Tazuna, and herself stared at him gobsmacked.
He could only stare back tiredly as Sakura began speaking again. "Tazuna! Amaya! He's alive! She exclaims before she jumps forward, hugging him tightly as he winced in pain.
"Sakura, that hurts!" He complains as the girl continues to squeeze him tightly.
Amaya laughs lightly and fists at her eyes again, making the boy glance at her. "Stupid, Duckbutt. Don't do that again!" She murmurs scoldingly, earning a "Hn." in response.
Tazuna watched the trio with a small smile as he wiped at his eye. 'So, things turned out right after all.'
Once Sakura releases him from her grip, Sasuke moves to sit up causing the girl to fuss. "No! No, what are you doing? You shouldn't move!" Sakura worries, trying to stop the Uchiha before any more damage could be done.
"Saa~... Take it easy. You've been unconscious for a bit." Amaya cuts in with a sigh, using her hands and upper body strength to support the boy.
"How's Naruto? And what happened to that guy in the mask?" Sasuke asked impatiently, looking back and forth between the two girls.
"Naruto's just fine but the.. the one in the mask, he's dead." Sakura replied softly, making Sasuke's eyes widen.
"Dead?! How?! Did Naruto do it?!" Sasuke asked surprised.
"Oh I... I came in late, I'm not sure what happened. He was protecting, Zabuza." Sakura answered before she began spouting out pleasantries. "I had faith in you, Sasuke! I knew you'd pull through! You're too cool a guy to stay down for long!"
'He never meant to, from the very beginning.' Sasuke mused, remembering the attacks Haku did during their fight before looking at the boy's body. Turning to the brunette behind him, he gave her a curious look.
"It's a long story, I'm sure Naruto would love to tell you all about it..." Amaya replied quietly with furrowed brows, not taking her eyes off of the blond's form.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes and looked forward as well. 'What the hell happened?' He thought, wondering how the two broke through.
***
"Naruto!" Sakura calls out, making the addressed tense.
"Huh?" He questions, not hearing any malice in the girl's voice.
"Over here!" Sakura called out again, prompting the blond to turn and watch as Sasuke slowly stood from the ground. "Look it's Sasuke! He's alright! He's alright!" Sakura yells again as a wide grin grows on the blond's face.
Sasuke helps Amaya stand up, she stumbles at first due to the numbness in her legs but Tazuna steadies her. Looking up at her friend, she sends him a thumbs up with a cheesy grin, making his smile grow wider - if possible.
Sasuke looks away from the girl and locks eyes with Naruto. Glancing away nonchalantly, he raises a single hand into the air.
"But how?" Naruto asked aloud as he continued to stare at his teammates before remembering what Zabuza said moments prior.
"While he was fighting you, his heart was breaking into. You see, Haku was too soft and kind."
"I see..." Naruto murmurs softly as he glanced at the group one last time before looking back at the situation at hand.
Kakashi looked back to see what the commotion was about and was pleased to see the two Genin. Both a little worse for wear, but alive and well, nonetheless. "Well, well. Wonders never cease. Amazing."
Suddenly, the thugs decide to break up the moment. "Hey! Yoo hoo?! Don't go gettin' too comfortable!" One said, shortly followed by another.
"This party ain't over yet! Who's gonna pay us now that Gatō's gone?"
The thug from before decided to cut back in, "No way we're gonna leave here empty handed! So, we'll just have to hit that village instead and see what they've got for us!" He sneers, his threat making the others behind him cheer loudly again.
"Not good." Kakashi mumbles tiredly.
"C'mon, Kakashi-sensei! You must have a jutsu that can take care of these bunch of losers!" Naruto replies encouragingly.
Kakashi shakes his head in response. "Not right now... I used too much of my chakra."
"Get 'em boys!" The thug said again, prompting the group to charge forward. However, before they got very far, an arrow flys through the air and embeds into the wood at their feet, stopping them in their tracks.
Everyone turns quickly, only to find Inari leading a group of villagers, each one carrying a weapon of sorts.
"There's one little thing you're forgetting about! Before you set one foot in our village, you'll have to go through all of us!" One of the men say, making the rest of the villager's cheer.
"Inari!" Naruto exclaimed happily as the boy laughed happily.
"Heroes usually show up at the last minute you know?" Inari states with a wide grin.
"They've all come.. the whole village..." Tazuna murmurs surprised, his eyes filling up with tears once more.
'Heh, no way am I gonna miss out on all the fun!' Naruto thought to himself as he quickly made a hand sign. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He yells, making four clones appear next to him.
"Saa~..." Amaya began, catching the others attention. "I've sat around long enough, I think. I'm ready to go home... Lets tear these guys apart!" She adds, creating three of her own clones.
"Hmm, I might have just enough chakra left to help you out." Kakashi concedes, also making the hand sign. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He mumbles, followed by the appearance of multiple clones -too many in fact, to count.
"Kakashi style!" The Joinin's clones say together, making the thugs scream in fear. "Okay, still want to fight?"
The thugs look around at the quickly doubled number of enemies and turned tail. "No thanks!" Some of them yell as they run back to the boats they came on.
***
"Victory!" Inari yells, prompting the villagers to cheer along with him.
Kakashi walks over to Zabuza as the villagers continue to cheer. "Sounds like its over..." Zabuza murmurs weakly, barely hanging on to life.
"Yeah." Kakashi answers with a small nod.
"Kakashi, I have a favor to ask." Zabuza begins, staring up at the man out of the corner of his eye.
"What is it?" Kakashi asks calmly, already having an inkling as to what the rogue wanted.
"Take me to him. Before I go, I need to see him one last time." Zabuza replies.
Kakashi pulls down his headband, covering his Sharingan once again. "Sure." He agrees compliantly, the crowds cheering quieting down as he kneels and begins removing the weapons in the rogues back.
Kakashi then rolls Zabuza over and gently picks him up, carrying him over to Haku. As they made their way over, it began to snow.
"Impossible." One of the villagers' state as they all look up.
"Snowing at this time of year?" Another asks curiously.
"Is it you, Haku? Are you weeping?" Zabuza asks as he stares up at the sky.
Kakashi quickly reaches Haku and lays Zabuza down next to the boy before quickly walking away to give the rogue his last few moments of peace.
"Thank you Kakashi." Zabuza says quietly as he looks at Haku's face. "You were always at my side. The least I can do is to be beside you at the end." Zabuza murmurs as he weakly reaches out a hand. "I know it cannot be, but I wish I could go to where you have gone... I wish I could join you there, Haku..." He adds finally, as he reaches out and touches Haku's face before taking his own last breath.
The sun soon begins to shine down as a tear rolls down Haku's cheek.
***
"He told me that where he was from, it was always snowing all the time." Naruto informed as he let his own tears fall once more.
"Of course... His spirit was as pure as the snow. You never know Zabuza, maybe you will join him there.. whose to say?" Kakashi murmured, sending the two nins a final glance.
"Is that really it, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked, making everyone all look up from the two graves.
"Hm?" Kakashi hums curiously in response.
"Is that the ninja way? To use and be used by people like tools?" Sakura asked again, her question prompting the other three Genin to look his way.
"Shinobi are all mere tools in the hands of destiny. No point in wondering whether it's right or wrong. It just is. It's the same in the Village Hidden in the Leaves." Kakashi answers.
Amaya's eyes narrow, not at all pleased with his answer.
"Well if you ask me, if that's what being a ninja is all about something's out of whack. Is that why we go through all this training? Just to end up like them?" Naruto asks, not turning away from Haku's grave.
"What is the reason for that?" Sasuke also asks, raising a brow.
Kakashi lets out a sigh, "Well, it's a question without an answer. And that is something we ninja have to deal with everyday of our lives. Like Zabuza and the kid."
"Saa~ Seems kinda ridiculous and backwards to me." Amaya cuts in, making them all turn to her. "What? I'd rather be in charge of my own destiny than be a pawn in some greater plot." The Minamoto adds, crossing her arms while looking to the side with an annoyed pout.
"Okay! I've just come to a decision!" Naruto exclaims confidently with a grin.
"What is it? What kind of ramen you're gonna eat when we get back?" Amaya asked, her eyes filled with mirth.
"No!... Well, yes, but that's besides the point!" Naruto replies, making the brunette snort in amusement. "Anyway, I've decided that from now on, I'm finding my own ninja way! A way that's straight and true without any regrets! From now on, I'm following the way of Naruto!" He finished happily, making everyone stare at him.
Kakashi made a noise of confusion at that before he finally broke down and chuckled lightly.
"We could've never finished the bridge without you! I can't tell you how much we're going to miss you." Tazuna said as he and the rest of the villagers sent the leaf ninja off.
"Do be careful!" Tsunami called out with a lighthearted smile.
"Thank you, for everything." Kakashi replied, considering that as his farewell to the two.
Amaya's eyes focus on Inari who's obviously trying to hold back his tears. Apparently so did Naruto as he said, "Mah, mah, don't get all choked up! We'll come back and visit real soon!"
"You swear you will?" Inari asked, on the verge of breaking down, catching the blond off guard.
Naruto begins to tear up himself, and Amaya cracks a smile. "Of course! You know Inari, it's alright to cry if you want, there's nothing wrong with that! Go for it!" Naruto reassures, holding back his own sobs.
"Who says I wanna cry?! Anyway, if there's nothing wrong with it then why don't you just go on and cry?!" Inari shoots back, his bottom lip quivering furiously.
By now, both boys were a blubbering mess as they stare each other down silently. Naruto, however, is the first to break and turn away. "Forget it!" He grunts.
Inari stares at the blond sadly, his hand raising pleadingly into the air before he lets it drop back to his side.
Both weren't even trying to stop the tears streaming down their faces at this point.
'Boys can be so pathetic.' Sakura thought to herself as she and the rest of the group deadpan at the two.
"It was all his doing, that boy made you stronger, Inari. And you in return made the rest of us stronger. It was thanks to that boy, we were able to build a bridge to a place we've never known. A place where we found our courage! A place to fulfill our dreams." Tazuna said as they all watched the group of ninja make their way across the newly built bridge.
"Say, speaking of the bridge.. now that it's finished, shouldn't we name it?" One of the villagers ask.
"Yes of course. And I know just the name!" Tazuna replied happily.
"You do? What?" The same man asks again.
"We'll call it, 'The Great Naruto Bridge'." Tazuna answers.
Tsunami laughs into her hand, grinning brightly as she said, "That's a very good name!"
"You sure about that name Tazuna?" The villager from before asks again, making the addressed laugh.
"It's a name that brought us good luck. It'll do the same for the bridge. I think this bridge will stand for a long, long time. Perhaps it will even be famous one day. The name Naruto, known throughout the world." Tazuna replies happily as he looks down at Inari who's wiping his tears away.
"That would be something, wouldn't it?" He added with a smile as he looked back up at the group. Their figures now mere dots in the distance.
"As soon as we get back, I'm gonna let Iruka-sensei fix me up a whole mess of ramen to celebrate a mission accomplished!... Oh! Just wait till I tell Konohamaru about all my adventures! The kids gonna worship me!" Naruto gloated with a loud laugh.
"Saa~... Iruka-sensei is gonna be broke by the time he's done with you. And I don't think Ebisu-san would like that very much considering what happened the last time." Amaya replied with a light laugh as the boy scoffed in return.
Kakashi raised a brow. 'Last time? What did they do that involved Ebisu?' He thought to himself as amusement glittered in his usual dull eye.
"Hey..." Sakura called suddenly.
"Yeah?" Naruto replied, thinking that the girl was addressing him.
"Not you, Naruto. Sasuke, when we get back do you wanna go out and do something together?" The pinkette asked, making the blond deflate as she leaned forward to look at the Uchiha walking on the other side of Kakashi.
"Oh brother." Amaya mutters with a sigh earning a glare from the pinkette and a low chuckle from Kakashi.
"I don't think so, thanks." Sasuke replies dully - as usual.
"Oh, okay." Sakura replied just as deflated as Naruto was beforehand.
"Sakura, I can do something with you, if you want?" Naruto asked hopefully.
"What?!" The pinkette screeched before punching the boy, who yelped in response. "Hey, that was a private conversation!" Sakura shouted as she sent Naruto flying off the bridge.
"Saa~... If you can even call talking to someone while you have three people walking between you private, then yeah, very confidential." Amaya butts in sarcastically, earning another glare from the pinkette.
Kakashi gave a closed eye smile as he reached out to pat the brunette on the head. 'What a team.' He thought, laughing internally to himself.