"Demon of the Hidden Mist, open your eyes. I am Sakulin."
In his daze, Zabuza seemed to hear someone calling him.
"Who? Who is Sakulin? Someone from the Land of Wind?"
He froze for a moment. Hearing "sand" in the name, he assumed it was someone from the Land of Wind.
But he didn't seem to know anyone from the Land of Wind.
"Wait! Didn't I die? Why am I still conscious? Have I reached the Pure Land?"
As his awareness grew clearer, he slowly opened his eyes.
He discovered that he hadn't gone to any Pure Land. Instead, he was lying in a room that looked anything but ordinary. Even its ceiling was pure white.
"Wait, I'm still breathing. I can still feel things. I'm not dead!"
Zabuza tried twitching a finger and discovered that he still had sensation and still needed to breathe.
Just then, several images flashed through his mind.
That masked person had asked whether he had any wishes. In the end, the man seemed to have said that he had made a contract with a demon!
And his wish had been to stay with Haku forever.
"Haku!"
At the thought of Haku, Zabuza seemed to fill with strength and forced himself upright.
"Oh, you're awake! Heh, pretending to be Sakulin really works."
Seeing Zabuza sit straight up in bed after he introduced himself as Sakulin, Tetsuya was thoroughly amused.
"Who are you? Where's Haku? And what is this place? Why are we here?"
Zabuza stared at the young man before him, his face full of confusion.
"Heh, you sure have a lot of questions. But that's fine. Clearing up other people's confusion is my favorite thing to do."
As he spoke, Tetsuya stood up, took a mask from his sleeve, and put it over his