Chapter 076
Naruto was not sure how long he had stayed like that, with Haku lying on top of him crying. Not that he particularly cared; it was obvious she had suffered even more than he had. If he knew his parents, and they had tried to kill him, he probably would have broken a long time ago. That she had survived was a testament to how strong her spirit was.
"I'm sorry," Haku sniffled out eventually, after getting all the crying out of her system, "I don't know what came over me." In all the time she had been a tool for Zabuza she had never cried, and now here she was bawling her eyes out not only on some stranger, but an enemy she would have to do battle with when Zabuza recovered.
Shaking her head Haku sat up and set her hand in her lap, looking down at them as if remembering the past.
"S'ok," Naruto said with a small smile. Wanting to comfort Haku in some way, the spiky haired blond moved on instinct and brought an arm around the raven-haired girl's shoulder.
Haku smiled as she leaned into the blond, resting her head on his shoulder. Even knowing he was an enemy she felt an odd sense of peace settle over her. Enough so that she had dropped most of her defenses and guards.
Maybe it was the odd aura the blond exuded, the strangely warm and comforting presence that he held. Or it could have been the similarities that she had seen between him and her, the look in the eyes and the general presence of someone who has lived a life of loneliness. However, whatever the cause was, Haku honestly did not care and just wanted to feel some form of comfort no matter how fleeting it was.
They stayed like that for a while longer until Naruto asked a question. "So…do you have a someone important to protect?"
"I do," Haku said, closing her eyes as she continued resting her head. "However, I don't think he would understand anything, if I were to tell him this…"
She had tried once when he asked her about it. However all Zabuza had done was give her this blank stare as if he did not understand. Not surprising considering he did not even remember his parents and most of his memories were bloody and violent, most of said violence being instigated by Zabuza himself. Yeah, she doubted that even smacking him in the face with her past would help him understand.
"Ah," Naruto said, sighing he leaned his head on Haku's. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, enjoying Haku's scent. The only other person he had been this close to was Anko and she smelled like blood, snakes, dango and sake. Not the most pleasant mixture of scents.
"I should probably go…" Haku commented after a while. They had been here for over an hour; no doubt Zabuza was wondering where she was since she had never taken this long to do something as simple as gather herbs, which was the excuse she gave him.
Naruto nodded reluctantly and let go of Haku, "Yeah…I should to; chances are my sensei is most likely looking for me by now."
The two stood up and Naruto created a clone to clean the picnic supplies. The two looked at each other for a moment, unsure what to do. After all, what do you say when someone essentially just bared their heart to another?
Haku was the one to move first, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. Naruto was a little embarrassed since Haku was at least three inches taller than he was, making him reach her shoulder. Not that it stopped him from hugging back, and enjoying the feel of someone hugging him.
"Thank you," Haku said as she backed away and gave Naruto a smile.
Naruto grinned as he rubbed the back of his head. "Hehe, don't mention it. Getting hugged by such a pretty girl, I think I should be thanking you."
Haku blushed at the compliment the blond gave her, having posed as a guy for so long she had never received compliments from anyone. It felt…nice.
She managed to reduce her blush to manageable levels and smiled at Naruto, "I had a nice time. Maybe…maybe we can do this again tomorrow?" she asked. Haku knew it was wrong to be so close to the enemy, but he understood her, something she was sure that even Zabuza could not do.
"I'd love to!" Naruto said with a large grin, excited that she actually wanted to see him a second time, "Same time tomorrow?"
"Yes," Haku said, her smile widening a tad.
"You're late," Kakashi commented to the blond as he read his book with a disgruntled Tazuna at his side. "We've been waiting for over an hour you know."
Naruto shrugged as he walked up the two, "Sorry, I ran into one of Zabuza's accomplices and had to fight them to the death."
Kakashi stopped reading and looked at him for a second. Naruto became nervous, wondering if he had seen through his half-truth.
His wonderings were banished when Kakashi eye-smiled, "Naruto…I'm…so proud of you…coming up with such an awesome excuse…I now feel like my time being this team's sensei have truly born fruit."
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