The corner of Haku's mouth was still stained with blood he had not wiped away, and his pale cheeks looked especially fragile in the cold air. He did not look back at Zabuza, only stood quietly in front of him, his gaze calm as he looked at Naruto, as if he were describing the most ordinary thing in the world.
"I am not a tool," Haku said softly, his voice light yet unusually firm. "When everyone abandoned me, when I could not even keep myself alive, it was Mr. Zabuza who took me in. To me, he is not an employer, not a leader. He is the only place I belong in this world."
He lifted his hand slightly, faint icy dust and cold air curling around his fingertips. "The meaning of my life is being able to do things for him, being able to step forward when he needs me. To fight for the person most important to me—even if it costs me my life—is something I do willingly."
Those words drifted lightly into the small courtyard, yet they were like a pebble dropped into a still lake, sending ripples through Naruto's and Sasuke's hearts.
Naruto opened his mouth. The anger and confusion that had filled him a moment ago suddenly left him not knowing what to say. Since childhood, he had been called the Demon Fox, shunned and hated by the entire village, so he understood better than anyone what it felt like to be "homeless" and "unneeded." Hidden within Haku's seemingly cold choice was the same thing Naruto carried: an extreme longing for bonds, for belonging, for being needed.
Sasuke stood to the side, silently watching Haku's back. After the Uchiha clan was wiped out, the only meaning left in his life was revenge against his older