Haku looked so lifeless as he stood in front of Kakashi. He grabbed onto Kakashi's wrist and twisted it as it was still pressed against him. He protected Zabuza from Kakashi's attack. He used himself as a shield, but he was delicate as the mirror he was able to create.
"Z-Zabu-za..." Haku muttered weakly.
"I guess you were wrong, Kakashi." Zabuza said, smirking underneath his bandages, "Well done, Haku."
"This boy sacrificed his life for your pathetic one." Kakashi said, narrowing his uncovered eye at Zabuza. He was angry at Zabuza who didn't seem to care that this boy had just thrown his life away to protect Zabuza's life; it sickened him. Unexpectedly, Zabuza lifted up his Kubikiribōchō and was ready to strike Kakashi; not really caring that Haku was in the way. Kakashi's eyes widened.
"Kakashi-sensei!" Kagome, Naruto, and Sakura shouted. Kakashi quickly grabbed Haku and jumped out of the way of the attack. He looked to the corner of his eyes and noticed that Naruto, Kagome, and Sasuke were about to head towards him.
"Stay out of this!" Kakashi commanded them. The three stopped in their tracks as they watched Kakashi carefully lay Haku down. Then he placed his hand over Haku's eyes and slowly shut them. He could feel Haku's muscles finally relax from the shock. Kakashi stood up and glared at Zabuza with hatred in his eyes.
"Let's finish this." Kakashi said.
"You took the words right out of my mouth." Zabuza said as he lift his blade in front of him. Kakashi took out his kunai and went straight towards Zabuza. The young genins wanted to help, but their sensei told them to stay out of it. They watched their sensei fight against Zabuza. They knew that they couldn't help Kakashi in this fight.
"I'd stay focused if I were you, Kakashi!" Zabuza yelled as he swung his blade towards Kakashi. But he reacted quicker than Zabuza and tried to hit him with his kunai which made Zabuza reel back.
How come I can't keep up with him? Zabuza thought in anger. Then Kakashi nicked his cheek with his kunai, which drew blood and made him spin to the side. His blade scraped the ground as he twisted his body around in order to regain his balance. He started to grow weak, panting slightly.
"I'LL SPLIT YOU IN HALF!" Zabuza yelled as he rushed towards Kakashi and swung his blade at him. But Kakashi easily dodged his swing by stepping back. Then he swung his blade vertically to cut him once more. It dented the ground when Kakashi disappeared from his view. Zabuza's eyes widened when he felt something pressing against the back of his neck. Kakashi was behind him, holding Zabuza's neck in a vice grip with his fingers.
"Look at yourself...falling apart. I knew you wouldn't be able to handle the long haul. You don't know what the true meaning of strength is." Kakashi scolded Zabuza with anger and disappointment in his voice. Kakashi was truly indeed disappointed in Zabuza. He knew that people like Zabuza didn't have true strength.
Zabuza growled lowly at Kakashi's words. He didn't care about how Kakashi viewed his strength. Suddenly, Kakashi stabbed two kunai knives into Zabuza's arms, rendering them useless. Then Kakashi took out two more kunai out of his bag and started twirling them.
"You lose." Kakashi declared as he brought down his two kunais. At the same time, Zabuza twisted his body around and swung his blade to cut off Kakashi's head. But Kakashi was able to stab the two kunai into Zabuza's other arm before he was able to dodge the upcoming swing. Zabuza's blade fell from his grip and skid a few feet away from his reach since he could no longer hold it because Kakashi had damaged his arms.
"What will you do now, Zabuza? Both of your arms are useless, so you can't even make hand signs." Kakashi asked. Kagome could easily tell that Kakashi was provoking Zabuza. It seem to have done the trick. She heard Zabuza growl and was about launch towards him, even though he couldn't fight with his arms. Then they heard the sound of someone tapping a cane on the sidelines. Everyone looked towards the direction of where the newcomer is.
"He did quite a job on you, Zabuza. You look like yesterday's sashimi." The person said in a slight humorous tone. Zabuza shifted his eyes over the other of the voice.
"I must say...I'm very disappointed in you, Zabuza." The person said. The person was a short man with puffy brown hair. He wore a small pair of black sunglasses and a business suit with a yellow shirt underneath and a purple tie. He had a bandaged left arm with a cane in his right. A hundred other rebels and thieves were behind him.
"What is this about, Gatō? Who the hell are they?" Zabuza asked, narrowing his brown eyes at Gatō who was smirking as the men behind him were snickering. Gatō chuckled.
"There's been a slight change in plans, Zabuza. According to the new plan, you're going to die right here on this bridge." Gatō said, smirking.
"What?!" Zabuza exclaimed, eyes widened. Gatō was smirking, still, at Zabuza's reaction.
"You're too expensive to hire. So I'm cutting off our deal. These thugs here are worth more something than you, Zabuza." Gatō said, chuckling again.
"Just look at you, Zabuza, demon of the mist. You look as demonic as a wet kitten." Gatō said, which brought a roar of laughter and taunting jeers in Zabuza's direction.
"And here I thought one rogue ninja was bad enough." Naruto said, narrowing his eyes at Gatō and the men behind him.
"I agree with you, fully, Naruto-kun." Kagome said. Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Gatō and the men as well. He didn't think that this man would stoop so low to hire thugs when he already hired a rogue ninja. The man would do just anything to gain what he wants. He clenched his fists in anger.
"Well, Kakashi, it looks like our fight is over. Tazuna is safe now since I'm no longer under Gatō's services." Zabuza said as his shoulders slightly slumped in defeat. Kakashi nodded.
"It would seem so." Kakashi said. Then he glanced at Gatō who walking towards them. He eyed his bandaged arm, wondering why it was like that in the first place. Gatō walked up to Haku's lifeless body. He narrowed his eyes behind his shades.
"You little brat, you nearly broke my arm from before!" Gatō yelled. Then he smirked, "I've been meaning to repay you for that."
Then he placed his foot over Haku's face, slightly jostled it. Everyone's eyes widened, except Zabuza, when they saw Gatō kick Haku's face, hard.
"I only wish he was alive to have felt that." Gatō said, disappointed, as he poked Haku with his cane. Kagome and Naruto both growled at Gatō's treatment of Haku.
"GET AWAY FROM HAKU!" Kagome and Naruto shouted as they ran towards Gatō, intending to rip him from limb to limb.
"Naruto, Kagome, stop it!" Kakashi said as he grabbed Naruto around his waist while Sasuke grabbed Kagome around her waist. Kakashi knew that the two would try to go after Gatō. Thank goodness Sasuke grabbed Kagome while he grabbed Naruto. Then the two stopped struggling.
"Are you just going to stand there and let Gatō treat Haku like that?" Naruto yelled as he glared at Zabuza's back.
"What does it matter? Haku is dead." Zabuza said, harshly. Kagome and Naruto's fists clenched in anger. They couldn't believe of what they were hearing. Did Haku mean nothing to him? After everything that Haku had done for him? That scum...
"You mean to tell us that he meant nothing to you? After everything you've been through?" Naruto asked with anger in his voice.
"You don't know the way of the shinobi, kid. I merely used him. Just like Gatō used me..." Zabuza responded in a cold and emotionless tone in his voice.
"Is that what you thought of Haku? A weapon to be used?" Kagome asked with venom in her voice, "Even though you and I are shinobi on two different ranks, we are different. We fight to protect those who matter to us while others fight for other reasons."
Zabuza was unresponsive at that moment. Kagome and Naruto knew the answer to her question. The two growled loudly and yelled,
"YOU UNGRATEFUL BASTARD!"
"YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT HAKU HAS DONE FOR YOU! YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE HE THREW HIS ENTIRE LIFE FOR YOU!" Kagome shouted. She remembered what Haku had said to them after she defeated him in their battle.
Zabuza...he is the only reason why I fight.
"He sacrificed everything for you...his own dreams, his life, everything he could have...for you." Naruto said, "He stood by your side for all these years...just for you."
But Zabuza saw me differently. A weapon. Something of use to him. It gave me a purpose to live...he gave me that reason...
"You've never cared about his feelings, did you?" Kagome asked, "That didn't matter to him...because he was happy....he was happy because of you..."
For the first time in a long time, I was happy. He made me very happy. That is why I live to fulfill his dreams. I was willing to do anything to make him happy, even if it meant becoming a ninja.
"YOU HAVE NEVER EVEN CARED ABOUT HIS OWN FEELINGS?! YOU'RE EVEN WORSE THAN GATō!" Kagome yelled. Then she breathed heavily, letting all of her anger at Zabuza. She despised Zabuza and Gatō at the same time. Naruto and Sasuke placed their hands on Kagome's shoulder, hoping to calm her down.
"To use people like that and...just...throw them away...that's too...too cruel." Kagome said with her head down as tears fell from her blue sapphire eyes. There was a silence that loomed around everyone on the bridge. Kakashi understood her words while Naruto and Sasuke were trying to comprehend them.
"You talk too much, girl." Zabuza said, breaking the silence. Kagome looked up at Zabuza and saw water drops near his feet. Kagome knew that it wasn't rain. When Zabuza looked up at the sky, Kagome saw tears running down the side of his cheeks. Naruto, Sasuke, and Kagome's eyes widened at this sight.
"Your words cut deep, deeper than any blade." Zabuza said, quietly, as his tears poured from his brown eyes. Kagome and Naruto now realized that Zabuza did cared about Haku. Then Zabuza stared at the ground where his tears had splattered onto. He remembered when he first met Haku. It was snowing that day when he encountered him on a bridge. He looked like a lost little boy who had lost everything before him, but he had the faint scent of blood on him.
"Haku was always so kind and gentle...but he felt pain...sorrow." He said as he glanced at Haku's dead body. He almost looked like he was sleeping.
"Now, curse him for making me feel these emotions as well!" His voice sounded angry with much remorse in it. Kagome gazed at Zabuza. She could sense the anger and sadness in his aura that resided inside of him. She couldn't help but feel sorry for Zabuza. She felt Naruto squeeze her right shoulder. She knew that he was feeling the same way as her.
"I feel contempt that this is the way it ends..." Zabuza said. Then he began to tear off his bandages with his teeth. The three genin's eyes widened when they saw his face: he was human. Zabuza smirked, he could feel the shock from the three genins behind him.
"What? Cat gotcha tongue? You're surprised to find out that I'm human? Some of us try to hide that fact, no matter how hard." Zabuza said, smirking, "Or at least, I failed to." Then his smirk disappeared.
"Boy." Zabuza said, Naruto shot his head up. He knew that he was referring to him.
"Throw me your kunai."
Naruto and Kagome were confused. Zabuza couldn't use his arms since they were immobile. Wordlessly, Naruto took out his kunai.
"Here." Naruto said as he threw the kunai to Zabuza. As it was being thrown to him, Zabuza had quick flashbacks of Haku and him; the time when they first met, his smile, and standing by his side. His smile most of all of them. Then he caught the kunai between his teeth and went straight towards Gatō like a bullet.
Panicking, Gatō turned around and ran towards the crowd of men behind him.
"KILL HIM! NOW!"
They readied their weapons as Zabuza charged towards them. The men thought he was insane, trying to take on them all at once. Zabuza proved them wrong when he managed to cut a few down with the kunai in his mouth until one of the men stabbed his spears into his back. He stopped for a few seconds. But that didn't stop him until Gatō was in his line of vision.
"If you're so desperate to go where your friend is, go by yourself!" Gatō yelled, happy that he was still alive. He smirked when he saw the men stab their spears into Zabuza's back. What he didn't expect was that Zabuza was still standing and went straight towards him. Then he felt the kunai pierced his chest. He could feel his blood slowly starting to leak from his wound.
"Unfortunately, I don't intend to go where Haku is. I'm taking you to Hell with me! I hear that there are demons that come in all shapes and sizes! Oh, I should fit right in, but you won't survive for long!" Zabuza yelled. Then he grabbed the kunai that was impaled on Gatō's chest and started slashing him all over. The last slash sent Gatō over the bridge and into the water below. Zabuza dropped the kunai from his mouth and let it clatter onto the ground. He turned and staggered towards the crowd. The men quickly made a path for him. Zabuza saw Haku when the last man moved to the side. He pushed himself harder to get to Haku's side. Suddenly, his legs went out and he collapsed onto the ground.
Haku...would you forgive me? For everything? Zabuza thought as his eyes closed. Everyone stayed silent. Kagome, Naruto, and Sasuke were surprised at what had just happened. Despite of his arms being immobile, Zabuza went into a crowd of thugs that had weapons in order to kill Gatō. They couldn't believe that someone would do something that crazy.
"Hey, hey, hey! Did you forget about us?! Because of you ninjas, you killed our pay source! We'll go into the village and take everything! Let's go men!" The men shouted and charged towards the tired ninjas who were exhausted from their previous battle. But they wouldn't back down, not on their life would they run away. Everyone got into their defense stance. Suddenly, an arrow landed in front of the crowd who quickly stopped at it. The genin team, Kirara, and Tazuna looked behind them and saw Inari with the villagers with pitchforks and shovels behind him.
"There's one thing that you're forgetting. If you want to step into our village, you'll have to go through all of us first!" One of the village men shouted. Then all the villagers shouted.
The villagers! They all came! Tazuna thought as he saw the villagers raise their weapons.
"INARI!" Kagome and Naruto shouted.
"Well they say that heroes show up at the last minute!" Inari said, grinning. Kagome and Naruto smiled at that moment. They turned the other way and saw that the crowd of thugs looked frightened for some reason. Kagome understood why.
"Naruto-kun. Sasuke-kun. How about we join in on the fun?" Kagome asked, smirking.
"Hai!" Naruto and Sasuke said. Then they performed the same hand signs.
"Kage Bunshin no jutsu!" Kagome, Naruto, and Sasuke said at the same time. Then they each produce five clones of themselves.
"I might have some chakra left to help you out." Kakashi said, "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!"
Twenty Kakashi clones appeared on the bridge. The crowd of thugs were starting to get very afraid. Kirara jumped in front of all of the clones and gave a mighty roar. Then the thugs turned and ran towards the boat. They sailed away and the whole villagers cheered. The ninjas cheered and smiled as well. Tazuna was also crying tears of joy as he held Inari in his arms. He was proud of his grandson. He brought the courage back into the village. But the moment of triumph ended when they saw Kagome walked towards Zabuza.
Kagome stood next to Zabuza. She saw him open his eyes and he turned towards her.
"Is it...over?" Zabuza asked.
"Hai, it's over." Kagome said.
"Could you do me a favor?" Zabuza asked, "I want to see Haku...one last time."
Kagome's eyes softened at Zabuza's request. She knew that he wanted to be at Haku's side before leaving this world. Afterall, they lived together and they wanted to die together.
"Of course." Kagome said. She knelt down and started to take out all of the spears and knives off of Zabuza's back. Naruto quickly ran towards her as she began to lift Zabuza up. She placed his arm around her shoulder and Naruto went on the other side of him and placed his arm on his shoulder as well. They slowly dragged Zabuza over to Haku. As they did, snow began to fall from the sky.
"Snow? At this time of year?" Tazuna asked while looking up at the sky. He was indeed shocked to see that it was already snowing, despite the season.
Kakashi watched two of his students stand near Haku's body and carefully place Zabuza next to him. He didn't expected the two of them to listen to Zabuza's request. Perhaps they understood his desire: to die beside the one who meant alot to you. He felt a nudge on his right side and saw the big cat from before. The cat made a sad growl of a sort as it sat next to him. The creature looked familiar to him. He saw the black diamond on its forehead and the two tails. Then it hit him: it was Kirara. But he wondered how she got so big in a short amount of time. He gazed at her softly before placing his hand on the back of her head. Somehow he could tell that she was feeling sorry for Zabuza and Haku.
"I feel the same way, Kirara." Kakashi said as he slowly stroke her fur and she growled sadly.
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Zabuza turned his head to the side, looking at Haku sadly. Tears began to fall from his cheeks once more.
"You were always by my side...the least I can do is stay by your side til the end." Zabuza whispered as he slowly and shakily raised his arm, despite how painful it was to move it, and placed it on Haku's once warm cheek.
"I wish I could go to where you are...right now." Zabuza said in a sorrowful tone, "How I wish I could join you there...Haku."
At that moment, some of the clouds parted, making the sun shine on the two individuals. Kagome's eyes softened at the scene. She knew that Zabuza cared a lot about Haku. Perhaps, it was fate that the two have met. Afterall, they were two lonely souls that have lost a lot in their lives.
"Kagome." Zabuza said in a weak tone.
"Hai?" Kagome asked, breaking out of her thoughts.
"Do you...do you think I'll be able to join Haku?" Zabuza asked.
"I think you will. I know that Haku has promised to stay by your side. He's probably waiting for you right now." Kagome said, smiling sadly.
"I'll be there soon to meet him then." Zabuza said. Then Zabuza's brown eyes closed. Kagome knelt down and placed her hands together in a prayer.
Please, let Zabuza be reunited with Haku. They deserve to stay together. Please, grant this wish. Kagome prayed. When she was done, she stood back up and watched the sun continued to shine on the two deceased figures that laid side by side. She knew that Haku meant a lot to Zabuza, it just took him this long to finally realize it. Then she heard sniffling beside her, she looked to her right and saw Naruto trying not to cry so much. Kagome placed her hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry, Naruto-kun. They'll be together." Kagome said, smiling softly as tears fell from her eyes.
"Hai." Naruto said as he tried to wipe away his tears with his sleeve.
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After two days of resting, Kakashi and his team decided to bury Zabuza and Haku. It was the least that they could do for them. Even though they were enemies, Kagome believed that they should have a proper burial. Kagome put seals on both of their bodies: so that their bodies wouldn't be disturbed. But to also make sure that no one would use their bodies as weapons.
"Kakashi-sensei." Sakura said, gazing at Zabuza and Haku's graves.
"Hm?" Kakashi asked.
"Is it true that ninjas only exist to be used as weapons?" Sakura asked, looking over her shoulder. Kakashi sighed. He knew that Sakura would ask that question sooner or later. Especially after what Haku and Zabuza had said about shinobi being used as weapons.
"Ninjas aren't suppose to seek out the reason for their existence. It's important that they exist as tools, that's all. This also applies in Konoha." Kakashi said.
"It might be true to some. But to me, ninjas exist to protect." Kagome said with her eyes closed.
"Protect?" Sasuke asked, curious. Kakashi and Sakura were also curious about Kagome's answer.
"Hai, to protect everything that is important to them." Kagome said when she opened her eyes, smiling softly at the two graves and then up at the sunset.
"I agree with you on that, Kagome-chan." Naruto said as he stared up at the sunset, "Okay, I've decided. I'm going to follow my own 'ninja way'. I'm going to run straight down the path that will have no regrets!"
Kakashi's uncovered eye widened when he heard Naruto following his own 'ninja way'. But then his eye creased and he let out a small chuckle. He heard a 'mew' on his right shoulder and looked to see Kirara sitting on his shoulder while staring at him. She mew again with her eyes closed. She seemed to be smiling up at him. His eye softened at the look. Somehow, he could tell that she was saying that she believes in the two young genins in front of him.
These two will change the shinobi world. Kakashi thought, I have a very good feeling about it.
"Come on, let's go back." Kakashi said as he turned around and started walking away with Tazuna and the young ninjas behind him. But Kagome stopped in her tracks and looked over her shoulder. She saw two translucent figures near the graves. One was a boy with short black hair and brown eyes who looked at least nine or ten years old and the other figure was a man about Kakashi's age. He had bandages wrapped around his mouth area, making it look like a mask, and wore a hitai-ate with the symbol of the Hidden Village of the Mist on it which was slanted sideways on his head. They both smiled warmly at her. Kagome smiled warmly back to them.
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A few days later, the bridge was finally finished.
"Thank you for helping us. It's because of you all that we were able to finish the bridge." Tazuna said to Team 7 as they waited at the exit of the now finished bridge with the rest of the village.
"I can't tell you how much we're going to miss you all." Tazuna said with a sad smile. Tsunami nodded.
"You all be careful on your way back." Tsunami said with a closed eye smile.
"Don't worry, we will." Kagome said, smiling back. Kirara mewed happily in agreement. Kakashi smiled underneath his mask. Naruto grinned and said, "Don't get all choked up, we'll see each other before you know it!"
Inari sniffled as he tried to hold back his tears. Throughout the whole ideal, Naruto and Inari grew a bond with each other and they became like brothers. Inari also bonded with Kagome and she became like an older sister to him.
"You promise?" Inari asked, his voice was wavering a bit. Naruto felt like his eyes were starting to water and said in a quivering voice, "Of course we will! Y-You know...you can cry if you want. There's nothing wrong with it."
Inari sniffled again and said, "Maybe I don't want to! Why don't you cry first if you say it's alright?"
"No, you first!" Naruto shouted, his voice cracking slightly. They had a small staring contest to see who would cry first with their sniffling and their eyes building with tears in their eyes. Then they both spun away from each other as tears fell from both of their eyes. It would appear that it was a draw. Kagome let out a quiet chuckle while her fist to cover her mouth.
Boys can be so stubborn. Kagome thought.
Everyone said their goodbyes and walked away. What Naruto didn't know was that Tazuna decided to name the bridge. It would be called, "The Great Naruto Bridge". He believed that it should be named after the boy who helped them gain their courage back. Tsunami also agreed with her father.
"When we get back, we should get Iruka-sensei to buy us some ramen. Not to mention, Konohamaru is going to worship us when we tell him of our first mission, Kagome-chan!" Naruto said excitedly with his hands behind his head.
"Hai! I can't wait to tell mom and uncle Koichi about our first mission! I hope she makes some of her famous oden when we get back!" Kagome said, excitedly as well.
"Hey Sasuke-kun, when we get back, do you want to do something together?" Sakura asked.
"No." Sasuke said without looking at her in a flat tone. It was almost as he was saying, 'not on your life'. Sakura's head slumped onto her chest and sighed. She thought she had a chance. But she guessed it was too much to hope for.
"I don't think that you'll ever get a date with Sasuke-kun, Haruno." Kagome said, smugly.
"What did you say?!" Sakura exclaimed while glaring at Kagome.
"You heard me." Kagome said, smirking.
"Why you-" Sakura began to say with her clenched fist in front of her. Suddenly, a full grown Kirara rushed by her with Kagome and Naruto on her back.
"Hey! Get back here, you two!" Sakura said as she ran after them. Kakashi chuckled at the scene.
"Things are really going to get interesting from now on, huh Sasuke?" Kakashi asked, grinning underneath his mask as he watched Sakura chase after Kagome, Naruto, and Kirara. Sasuke gave a small chuckle at that thought. He had the same thought as his sensei.
"For once, I agree with you, sensei." Sasuke said, smirking.
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Waste is worse than loss. The time is coming when every person who lays claim to ability will keep the question of waste before him constantly. The scope of thrift is limitless.
-Thomas A. Edison