Haruno in Kiri

by Esrys

Summary:

Having accidentally killed Zabuza, Sakura is forced to go with Haku to bury him in Kirigakure. But she’ll do anything to escape, even when faced by slowly growing feelings.

Chapter 1

“Tazuna-sama, you must stay exactly where you are.”

Sakura didn’t notice the flare of chakra emanating from Naruto, or hear Kakashi-sensei and Zabuza’s fighting. No, she was running with her mind focused on one thing, and one thing only.

Sasuke.

Sasuke was hurt. Sasuke was in pain. Sasuke looked like he was going to die. Sasuke needed someone to protect him. Sasuke. Sasuke. Sasuke. The hunter-nin, Haku, appeared before her, like a figure of her imagination.

“I’m afraid I can’t allow you to continue,” he said, and his voice was the mist twining around them. “Genin-san and Naruto-san are now my opponents. Unless you permit me to assassinate Tazuna, your death will come posthaste.”

Sakura gaped, before her mouth pressed into a firm line.
“You hurt Sasuke,” she hissed. She flung three shuriken at him, and while her aim was true, so was Haku’s. He deflected them with a single senbon.

“I see,” he said, sounding almost sorrowful. “Perhaps we’ll meet in the afterlife.”

He moved.

A bolt of blood-orange moved faster. Naruto, draped in an effervescent cloak of chakra, slashed at his mask with claws. “Naruto!” Sakura shouted.

He ignored her, and whether intentional or not, he left with Haku. What was that? she thought, then shivered. Approaching Sasuke’s body, Sakura brought out a roll of cloth and antiseptic from her pouch.

She began to remove each senbon from him, the books of anatomy she had idly memorized flashing in her mind. She was conscientious of all the vital points, and she had expected to leave almost all of the senbons alone because of it.

As it turned out, she was both right and wrong. The senbon were at Sasuke-kun’s vital points, but were thrown in at such an angle, that they were relatively harmless. A few more millimeters to the left and he would be permanently paralyzed.

A centimeter forward and his major artery would’ve been sniped: The senbon were mocking him. Beneath Haku’s cool exterior was a psychopath, who freely gave his loyalty to a deranged man.

He was a threat who had to be eliminated. Thinking on her feet, Sakura grabbed a kunai and scanned the mist for his presence. She saw a tendril of black, drifting in the wind, and she hurled her kunai at it. She didn’t know then that that action would alter the course of her life.

Haku startled, his eyes widening, and there came the chirping of a thousand birds from where Kakashi and Zabuza were fighting.

He disappeared in one of his ice mirrors not even a second later. Sakura frowned and continued healing Sasuke. “Hey, Sakura-chan, what was that about?” called Naruto, jogging up to her.

“Naruto..” Sakura hesitated. She wouldn’t admit it, but Naruto scared her. “What was that red chakra around you?”

Naruto blanched, shaking his head. “What red chakra, Sakura-chan?”

“I..nevermind. I must have been seeing things.” Sakura felt strangely vulnerable. “Can you help me clean up, Sasuke-kun? I’m worried about him. He had dozens of needles inside him.”

“Of course, Sakura-chan. Dattebayo! But maybe we should see if Kakashi-sensei is alright, ne?”

Ah. That’s right. By the current sound of things, a winner had been decided. And by the way neither Sakura, Naruto, Tazuna-sama (who was hiding behind a tree), or Sasuke-kun were dead, it was obvious who won.

“I don’t want to leave Sasuke-kun behind, but if it’s only for a moment.” She stood up. “Where did Haku go?”

“Haku? I don’t know. He vanished in one of his mirror thingies. I would’ve followed him, but I was worried that he’d teleport to you.” Naruto’s voice was light, but there were shadows in his eyes.

“I wouldn’t want to keep him waiting. Arigatou, Naruto. Let’s go.”

The mist was billowing away, and by the time they traversed across the bridge, it was nearly gone. Kakashi-sensei saw them first, and in spite of the mask covering half of his face, it was obvious that he was glad to see them.

“Naruto, Sakura,” he said. “Are you two alright? Where’s Sasuke?”

“We’re fine, but Sasuke-kun was injured. He should be fine if we get him to a doctor,” answered Sakura.

“Good. We’ll leave as soon as our guest says it’s okay. He threw senbon at me when I tried to go to you guys.”

He motioned behind him, and Sakura had to catch herself from flinching at the gaping hole in Zabuza’s chest. He was bundled up in Haku’s arms, who was sobbing in such a way, one could mistake him for a statue.

“Haku!” Naruto yelled, and Sakura wanted to tell him to be quiet, and not disturb perhaps the saddest moment in Haku’s life. “Are you okay?”

“N-Naruto-kun,” Haku stammered. Sakura couldn’t help herself from staring at him; she had never seen desolation so clearly etched. For Haku, it seized his each and every muscle. “No, I am not okay. I feel so devastated that it’s taking my breath away and angry. I feel angry.”

“Haku…” Naruto stared at him. “I want you to know that everything’s going to be okay.” He raised a hand, placing it on his heart. “Even if Zabuza’s gone, and even if it feels like your heart is being ripped apart, everything will still be okay.

“‘Cuz we’re going to take you with us to Konoha, and I know it’s going to be hard for you, but don’t worry. Since I’ll be there for you. All of us will. Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke, Sakura, and even the Hokage.”

Lovely speech, Naruto, but huh?

“You got it? Dattebayo!” Naruto smiled, and it was less of a smile, and more of a ray of sunshine.

Haku returned it tenderly. “I wish what you were saying could come true, Naruto. Perhaps, we really could've been each other's precious person.”

His brows knitted together, and a mask, not unlike the one Naruto broke, descended over his delicate face.

“But in this lifetime, my soul is tainted with the overpowering urge to kill someone.” His gaze traveled from Naruto’s. Sakura’s breath caught as she glanced at Kakashi-sensei. He had just fought a strenuous battle with Zabuza, and—he was looking at her.

Haku was looking at her.

Kakashi-sensei stiffened, stating, “I hope you're not going to try to kill one of my genin, Haku-chan, since that will mean I’ll have to kill you. Besides, I was the one who killed Zabuza.”

“Genin-san was the one who threw the kunai that prevented me from fulfilling my duty as Zabuza’s tool. Its only fair. An eye for an eye.” Haku’s beautiful eyes burned.

“I will kill any who get in my way if you do not give me the girl. Even you, Naruto. I am Zabuza-sama’s better, and you will find me a much more difficult opponent than before.” He gently set Zabuza down, straightening himself up to his full height.

An elegant sword materialized in his right hand, and he adopted an evidently well-practiced pose.

“Sakura,” Kakashi-sensei hissed. “You will run as fast as you can when I say go. Do not take Sasuke with you; he is not Haku’s target. Do you understand me?” Sakura’s mouth opened and closed.

“Go, Sakura. Go!”

He couldn’t have said it sooner, for behind her, the world was erupting into ice and snow. Sakura almost lost her footing from the heavy sheet of ice building on the bridge.

She darted toward Sasuke, knowing that she couldn't just leave him in the middle of the bridge, Kakashi-sensei! She pulled him to the side, and intended to leave him there, before she found herself looking at the corpses of the bridge builders.

With Sasuke concealed, Sakura headed to the forest, at the head of the bridge. Noise escaped her, along with the breath in her lungs.

Stray branches ripped through her skin, and tangled her hair, and just when she felt confident that she could stop running, a chain shot toward her—forged of sparkling ice.

Was this another one of Haku’s jutsu?

She dodged it by instinct alone. Another chain came, and she rolled. They were like snakes, slithering on the ground. Did this mean Kakashi-sensei and Naruto were… Sakura didn’t finish the thought. A third chain appeared, and then a fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and finally an eighth.

They had her encroached on all sides. When Sakura performed a substitution, they were there a second later. Clones were useless as well, considering they ignored them.

In the end, tree-walking proved to be her greatest boon. It was the only reason why she hadn’t been caught yet: The chains couldn’t slither on trees.

However, they could knock them down. Like great lassos, they connected with each other and pulled.

Which was how she found herself frantically leaping from tree to tree, all notions of elegance left far behind her. As the wind howled, and flurries of snow began to fall in spiraling typhoons, Sakura hoped that her and her team would come out of this alright

Chapter 2

She found herself in a cave, dank with shadow. The chains had shattered not too long ago—from Haku’s defeat or otherwise, she wasn't sure.

Sakura was at an impasse, and until she could make a decision, the hands gripping her kunai would be tighter still.

Sakura had never thought of herself as capable as wanting death, but she wished that steel would slide between Haku’s heart, and twist.

If she left, would she find Kakashi, snow dusting the breadth of his shoulders, and a familiar crinkle to his eyes, or Haku, whose every step foretold her death?

She didn’t know, and that terrified her.

The wind howled, and in its echoes, Sakura swore she heard footsteps. A minute passed, and then two, three, four—

A silhouette appeared at the entrance of the cave, one with long, billowing hair. Sakura’s heart dropped, and she threw her kunai right at it. Haku grabbed it in midair, and threw it back.

Sakura ducked beneath it, but before she could do anything else, she was thrown against the wall. The rock tore open her scalp, and ignited fire in her veins. Her scream echoed.

“How?” she choked out. “How did you throw me?” He was nowhere near her. The only way he could would be with the..wind. He was controlling the wind.

Haku took a step forward, and ice coalesced around her ankles and wrists, sealing her to the wall. A serpent of water formed in the air.

He made a hand seal, and the serpent surged forward. Sakura barely had time to close her mouth as it crashed against her face—streaming up her nose, filling her lungs.

She thrust her head backwards, flailed her legs, and if she could she’d be clawing at her chest, anything to impede this overwhelming pressure.

But then, it abated.

Water streamed from her nose and mouth, and flowed back into the serpent shape. Sakura panted, gasping for air, and she had a premonition as to what was coming, and would be coming for the foreseeable future.

Torture.

She was going to be tortured.

“You’re a monster,” she breathed. “A monster.”

“It’s almost funny how I think the same of you.”

Something fierce simmered in her heart, and she didn’t know what it was, until she said, “I don’t regret throwing that kunai. I would do it a million times over.”

Haku scowled, made another seal. A moment later, ice pierced her arms, and frost covered her skin in white sheets.

Sakura screamed again.

By the time he was finished, nearly an hour later, she was clinging to the vestiges of her consciousness.

Kakashi-sensei hadn’t come, and that ruined her.

Through blurry eyes, she saw Haku drop to the floor, bringing pale hands to his face. Tears dripped down his cheeks.

Why, she asked herself, is he crying?

She wanted to rage, to howl, and thrash, but she could only whisper, “I hope you cry for the rest of your life.”

-x-

When Sakura woke up, she couldn’t move her body. Not a finger, nor a toe. She felt, more than heard, Haku’s cool gaze slide over her.

“You’re in a state of complete paralysis,” he said. “I inserted a senbon into the base of your spinal cord.”

Her eyes widened, and had a gag not been in her mouth, perhaps a shriek would’ve filled the forest.

“You’re crying,” he noted, and looked away.

Sakura was on his back, his hands ‘round her ankles, and her arms wrapped around his chest. It was an intimate position that she’d rather reserve for Sasuke-kun.

Amidst the high trees, they left to somewhere very far indeed. Where was he taking her? she wondered, with no small amount of fear. To get better torture devices?

It was quite the stretch, but as was the last day. She would never forget it.

“I took your weapons as well,” he added. “You’re helpless.”

Sakura said nothing.

A few hours later, they stopped. Haku stated, “We’re finished for the day.”

He reached forward, and she flinched.

He blinked, his hand falling to the side, but not a second later, it shot forward, and removed her gag.

Sakura stared at him. In raspy tones, she enquired, “What are you going to do with me?”

He replied easily enough: “I don’t know yet. You’ll be coming with me until I do. I’m,” his voice caught, “I’m going to be burying Zabuza-sama in Kirigakure.”

In Kirigakure?

“Oh.”

For if he was leaving for Kiri, then she was as well.

Haku gazed at her, his fingers curling in his palms.
“I’m going to take out the senbon in your back,” he said. “If you do anything at all, I won’t hesitate to kill you.”

He was looking for an answer, and she replied, “Okay.”

Haku set her down, beside a rather lovely patch of flowers, and turned her over until they were just out of her reach.

Their fragrance was of honeydew, and the grass beneath her caressed her in warm flutters, and she was deeply terrified.

“There, it’s finished. In about thirty minutes, you’ll regain sensation.”

“T-That’s it?” she couldn’t help but ask.

Sakura was expecting for his fingers to at least graze her.

Haku turned her over again, and arched a brow. “I’m very good at what I do.” His lips curved, then flattened, and suddenly his sorrow was very evident to see. As was his ire.

“I’m going to go get dinner,” he said stiffly, and vanished in a swirl of air.

Left with nothing for amusement, Sakura could only wait and think, and she had already thought much. Naruto, and Sasuke—she could only pray that they were alright (and were charging straight toward her).

When he came back, Haku made strangely delectable rabbit stew. He first began by sizzling the meat, and although it seemed to be a paltry amount, it oozed oil and juices. Once fragrant, he added herbs: sprigs of rosemary; thyme; long strands of a yellow weed.

He poured in the water next, and there was a crackling, before a great gout of steam rose in the air. He finished his ministrations by adding a sprinkling of salt, and settling the lid over the pot.

Having finished her stretched, Sakura was sorely reminded of the last time she ate, and was kept in rapture by his movements.

His eyes were on her, though, and she rubbed her arms. The lambent flames were warm, but not warm enough to stave the cold.

They ate, and the food was good.

Haku didn’t seem to be in a garrulous mood, however, so once finished, he turned over to his side, and slept. Sakura did much the same. She would ache for a long time from the torture, but if she had an opportunity to escape, well, she was a kunoichi.

The following morning, they continued their run. Haku didn’t insert the senbon back into her, but seemed to make up for it by the grueling pace he set. Sakura had half a mind to swerve right, and hope for the best.

The wind streamed through their locks, and Sakura muttered acerbically, “I’m going to shave your corpse.”

“What was that?”

She squeaked.

Haku fell silent again.

The day was settling into the afternoon, the sun a blazing spear of light, when he asked in his quiet way, “Tell me about Naruto.”

“Naruto?” she said aloud. “Why would you—“ and she cut herself off. “Naruto is..smart in dumb ways. He’s loud a lot of the time, but sometimes impresses you.” She hesitated. “Does that answer your question?”

He glanced at her, and she found her chest tightening.

“Tell me more.”

Does he have a crush on him or something? Suddenly, his inquisitions made a lot more sense. Could she use this, somehow, to get what she wanted?

That was how Sakura declared, “Naruto has a big secret. He likes men.”

“Oh?” Haku came to a graceful stop on a branch. Sakura, unfortunately less gracefully, did the same. “If that’s a big secret, then why are you telling me?” His voice rose. “That’s exactly what I’d think someone like you would say. Zabuza’s killer!”

Sakura took a step back, but Haku was already racing forward. Something fierce and powerful built inside of her, and she didn’t know what it was until she shouted, “As if you weren’t going to kill all of us otherwise! We’re shinobi! That’s what we do!”

If he heard her, he showed no sign of it.

Sakura dragged herself after him.

That night, unsurprisingly, things became worse between them. It was in their silence, the tense way Haku handed her the bowl, the tenser way Sakura drank from it. But mostly, she just felt scared.

Haku’s displeasure with her could be proven in far more..visible ways than hers. Tomorrow, she decided, she’d do better.

Tomorrow came, and it didn’t go better. They were apathetic to one another, and she must’ve overestimated how weary she’d be from running for half the day, for she could barely breathe, much less scheme convoluted relationship endeavors.

The day after that had the verdant forests thin, and at this first sign that they were entering Kiri land, a dour mood struck her. Haku, naturally, brightened. She couldn’t help but look behind her as they ran.

Days had passed by. Surely, Kakashi-sensei was encroaching. The shadows taunted her by saying, “Why would he go out of his way to rescue somebody like you?”

If she couldn’t find an opportunity to escape, she thought with steely grit, then she just had to make one.

Later, night fell in a curtain of midnight, and a mist had settled. She only had a slender thing of a sleeping bag to shield her, and she shivered. But she didn’t sleep.

The next morning, Haku stopped at a port, and Sakura knew that if she took a single step on a boat, her life was forfeit—they'd be entering the formal borders of the Land of Kiri. Today, she knew she had to flee.

“Stay close to me,” Haku said, his voice distant as he exchanged his clothing for civilian wear.

“Okay,” she replied, her own mundane jacket wrapped tightly around her.

He didn’t say what they were doing, but Sakura had enough context. Even the faces of the faces of the people here were different: all narrow-eyed, and sharp-cheeked. A moment passed, before he appeared in front of her in a dark blue qipao.

Sakura had forgotten how deeply his beauty shone, and the sight was so disconcerting to her that she nearly swooned. This was her torturer? She almost couldn't collude the two images together.

Discomfort was a snake slithering in your gut.

Haku’s mouth quirked to the side. “Let’s go.”

“Hai.”

They left the clearing, through the sunlit dew, and slipped into an alleyway. Beneath them was cool stone, and to the side were neatly laid homes, steam churning from their chimneys. Muted chatter lingered in the walls, and carried by the wind.

After the solitude, it was bliss, and then Haku grabbed her hand.

“Why?” she asked, ever so alarmed.

“There’s a lot of people here, Sakura-san,” he told her.

Sakura read between the lines. It would suit her purposes, but she didn’t have to like it. They went forward, and joined the people weaving in the town

The town appeared to be a trading post of sorts, and many men and women stood at stalls, displaying all sorts of goods, pastries, and fried skewers.

A few called out to them, but Haku ignored them, to Sakura’s displeasure, and made an arrow's line to the dock.

He approached a man, and asked, “A boat to Kiri, please.”

He exposed the silver gleam of his headband in his pocket, and the man’s eyes widened. “It would be my pleasure,” he said. He cast an eye in Sakura’s direction.
“Your friend?”

“My—“

“Captive.”

At that time, well, she did her best to stab him. Haku may have confiscated her kunai, but the long nights she spent shaving down wood weren’t for naught.

He sidestepped, expectedly, and jumped backwards, ice glimmering in the air. Sakura scowled, and made a trio of clones. They scattered, but a pair of whizzing senbon exploded two. Only Sakura, substituting with the third, allowed it to live.

The senbon dug into her thigh.

“This isn’t wise at all, Sakura-san,” Haku said, cocking his head to the side.

“Maybe it isn’t,” she replied, feeling like a pink-haired caricature of Naruto. “But you should never underestimate me!”

She rushed forward.

Haku’s eyes narrowed. “Sensastu Suishō,” he snapped, taking to the air. What seemed to be a million needles of water took shape. Sakura sorely wished for Naruto’s horde of shadow clones as they descended.

They tore into her skin, and left with a flying threat, she could do nothing but dodge. She had no jutsu to defend herself with, no ally to help. They paused, for only a second, before swirling into a typhoon.

The air became so thick with the needles that her visibility dimmed to her arms and legs, and she could swear that just beyond them, the Grim Reaper lay in wait. The tearing became a cleaving, and the needles formed slicing blades.

Sakura fell to her knees, her head bowed.

“I was going to tell you that this was going to happen,” came a soft voice. Haku stood in front of her, a figure hewn from moonlight. He made a hand seal, and the
roaring in her ears became not but a whisper.

“I told you not underestimate me,” she coughed, and
whatever he was going to say faded away, for Zabuza was there kneeling before him. “Y-You,” he quivered.

A shadow loomed behind him, and he swerved so quickly on his feet he was but a blur, and yet, he did nothing but stare as Sakura’s wood kunai pierced his chest. Or rather, Zabuza’s kunai.

“Even in death,” she sighed, “you can’t harm your master. That’s why I won, Haku.”

“I knew that clone was there,” he whispered.

“I know,” and Sakura limped to her feet, and began walking away. “I was going to tell you that this was going to happen.”

Notes:

:) I’m back