The Forgotten Uchiha

It became tense once a chill was felt in the air by the ones guarding Tazuna for two separate reasons; Sasuke and Sakura both felt that cold shiver when the masked ninja that they saw in the forest emerge while Kakashi could feel his old life as an ANBU come back as he remembered the the icy fingers of the reaper crawling up his back. "So he was alive after all…I should have guessed since that Hunter-Nin with him used senbon to paralyse him and run off with the body instead of disposing of it immediately."

"So you were on his side all along…Kakashi-Sensei, let me handle them." Sasuke growled as he felt incensed at being played and wanted the satisfaction for himself.

"Go get 'em Sasuke!" Sakura cheered with her usual reverence as he stepped forward and in a blink, the two vanished and clashed each other with senbon and kunai. Once their standoff broke, the two were moving at incredible speed and even being able to get a few shots in on Haku by using against their Ice Jutsu.

"I really need to talk to Sakura about her one-sided attention…But right now I have something important to focus on…" Kakashi thought as he gripped his two kunai.

"I have to give your kid credit, Kakashi…Even some trained Jonin have difficulty keeping up with Haku's speed…You must've put those rugrats through hell to keep them up." Zabuza smirked as he rushed forward to attack Kakashi.

"It's your own fault for underestimating them and for insulting their skill." Kakashi remarked as he blocked and weaved between strikes. "Sasuke stands as half of the most talented pair of rookies in the Village and the proudest fighter, Sakura over there is the smartest of them all." He continued with an almost proud note in his voice. "And Ryōga is our untapped well of potential…You give him a challenge and he'll fire back at you tenfold in ways you can't expect."

Sasuke was focused on knocking Haru back as he heard Kakashi's words, if he hadn't seen it himself. He would have outright denied Ryōga any form of credit but the last few days had him thinking things over; "As much as I hate it, Kakashi's right…The Dud's been able to keep up with us despite his roundabout way of doing things…"

Haku got to their feet as they were eyeing Sasuke like a cautious predator. "You've improved your speed…I commend your progress...Even though I have to cut it short…"

"You may be fast, but I've gotten faster…And on top of it, I have the stronger skills that can outdo anything you can." Sasuke smirked as he felt like he was already on the way to winning."

"Is that so?" Haku asked with a chilling tone as they stood up straight; "Then I don't suppose you've been paying attention…With all of your attacks and fire Jutsu that managed to turn my attacks into water…You've neglected to remember where I'm from." They warned Sasuke cryptically as they made a quick handsign; The water that was splashed around the unfinished bridge from Haku's attacks had started to rise like rain in reverse, pooling together and then freezing in place as large crystal like mirrors that barred anyone disturbing their fight or Sasuke from getting out "Secret Hidden Mist Style: Crystal Ice Mirrors!"

"More Ice? This is just a one trick pony move…Even the Dud can use more than one Element." Sasuke thought but kept on guard as they saw Haku step into the mirror like it was gelatin and then populated every mirror around him.

"You said you were faster, correct? Then maybe I should test that theory and show you real speed." Haku said with a blunt tone as suddenly a rip on Sasuke's sleeve appeared followed by an almost untraceable blue rushed him from every angle, leaving cuts on his body and moving too quickly for Sasuke to even land a hit back on Haku.

Meanwhile, Kakashi was trying to hold back a Mist Village knife that had embedded itself in his palm when he tried reaching for his headband. "I need to do something! Sasuke will get shredded in there but if I or Sakura go in to try helping him out, Zabuza will get his chance to targ-"

"STAY AWAY FROM HIM!" Sakura yelled as she threw a kunai to try distracting Haku enough to get Sasuke his moment, however all it did was make the Ice user casually flick away the kunai with their senbon.

"If you think that I am too blind to notice attacks from my blind spots at this speed? You're more ignorant then I-"

"Try again!" A third voice yelled as several Kunai began firing towards Haku, who managed to deflect the first ones just as easily as Sakura's.

"Do Ninja from your Village have troubles remembering? What point do you have if you repeat the same mistakes." Haku reprimanded them though they saw a figure in the distance through the fog.

Ryōga in the distance weaving handsigns and finally clapped his hands together; "Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!" He yelled out as he then threw several shuriken forward which then duplicated into hundreds.

"Stone Breathing Style: Form 6 - Sheer Drop!" Ryōga yelled as the real body took the chance to make a cut clean through one of the mirrors and landed in the epicentre with Sasuke. "Sasuke, I got here as….What the?" Ryōga whispered as he saw his cousin's body covered in cuts and tried to help him up while the slashed Mirror reformed itself behind him.

"How the…Hell did you get in here, Dud? These mirrors are thick and anything I tried to land on them was too slow since they move too quickly to get hit…" Sasuke berated Ryoōga as he got closer to him.

"Well…This is all ice, isn't it? Then it's pretty obvious what we should do next." Ryōga suggested as he began weaving hand signs, with Sasuke smirking a little and then doing the same but with his back poised against his cousin's.

"Fire Style: Twin Fireball Jutsu!" The two yelled out as they both let rip with a powerful buildup of fire on either side, the intensity however was too far spread out for the mirrors as it only made them drip and melt slowly.

"Fire like that won't melt my Ice Mirrors any faster…You'll only put yourself on a race between what runs out faster…Your Chakra or your life…" Haku warned them both from the mirrors. "I don't want to kill you…Back down before you force my hand…"

Sasuke saw Haku rearing back to attack again and in that quick instance; The two Uchiha were barraged by the Hunter-Nin's blindingly fast movements, with Sasuke being able to dodge at the last moment with his awakening of the Sharingan. "I already told you….I can catch up to your speed….I can match your reactions…And I can outdo you!" He declared as he got to his feet, both Sasuke and Ryōga having been cut up decently enough but Sasuke looking the more worse for wear.

"A Sharingan…No wonder you possess such talent on your own…You might be able to dodge my technique…But can he?" Haku asked as they readied the senbon for another strike and then rushed forward.

——Meanwhile, outside——

"Your movements are slowing down, Kakashi…The worry for your two kids in there is rushing all that blood to your head and making you a bigger target…" Zabuza smirked as he reared his sword back after landing a blow on Kakashi's torso.

"Once again, you underestimate them both…Sasuke and Ryōga both have my utmost faith, Heir to the most superior clan in the Hidden Leaf Village and the most hardworking Ninja there."

Zabuza paused for a brief moment; "So…If that's the case, that sour looking kid must be the heir…The sole survivor of the Clan's massacre…"

Kakashi shook his head; "That's where you're wrong…Even though he hasn't shown it yet…They are BOTH survivors of it."

——Inside the Mirror Prison——

Ryōga's vision was blurring a little as he got to his feet, carefully pulled out a senbon from his shoulder and tried to keep a tight hold of his sword. "I…I refuse to go…down?" His emboldened words tapered off when he saw Sasuke in front of him and was practically covered in needles from his neck to his arms and his legs. "Sasuke!" He yelled out in frightened worry as he caught his cousin when he toppled over.

"D-Dud…No matter how many times that I try to push you away…You keep trying to butt in…" Sasuke whispered hoarsely as he struggled to stay conscious; "Regardless of what I say to you."

Ryōga tried to hold on to him and kept trying to keep him conscious; "Why? Why did you jump in like that? Your life is too important to throw away…Last of the Uchiha, right? You always said that even when I was around to hear you!" He yelled and tried his hardest to sound angry in order to fight Sasuke back up onto his feet.

Sasuke coughed up some blood from his exertion but glared up at him, though in this time; It was less of the typical angry and disdainful look that he had but it had more of a subdued and almost accepting look to it. "How the…Hell should I know, I saw you and just…My body jumped in before I could react to it."

Ryōga tried desperately to get Sasuke to hold on but he continued to talk through laboured breath and then reached a weak hand up and gripped onto Ryōga's shirt. "You're gonna be okay, just…Just hold on! Grab my hand and squeeze…Just keep squeezing because we got people to come back to!" Ryōga could only plead with him as he grabbed Sasuke's hand. "Just…Please don't leave me alone…"

"Remember when we were told about him? I swore an oath that day to kill Itachi…I wanted that oath to keep me going through to the end…But it's down to you now…Please…Du-Ryōga…Don't you dare die before him! Avenge our families…Your brothers…My parents…" Sasuke hoarsely yelled before he finally fell limp, leaving Ryōga with that knowledge and with the realisation that his only remaining family had died in his arms.

Ryōga sat silently in shock as he lowered Sasuke to the ground. "Why? I…I finally started trying to bridge the gap with him…And starting to get closer…Only for someone else to take my family away…Again…"

Haku merely watched as they saw Ryōga stand to his feet and his body start to shake. "He must have truly cared for you…He managed to strike me in mid motion before moving in front of you as a shield despite knowing that it would send him to his doom." They stated with a slight bow of their head; "By sacrificing himself for you, he has earned a Ninja's utmost respect…"

"Shut. Up…." Ryōga spat out with venom in his voice and for a split second, a small burst of fire emerged from his mouth as he exhaled and his whitened knuckles squeezed the sword tight, turning to face Haku; The remaining Uchiha wore a face of unbridled fury and grief, his cheeks stinging with the fresh fall of tears across the cuts on his face. Though the biggest change for Ryōga was his eyes; Previously they were a bright blue-gray when he was angry at Inari but now they had taken on a deep crimson colour with two tomoe in each eye. Though the gaze directed at Haku was drastically different from "I'll protect what's precious to me!" or "My mission is still priority!" and instead was something far more primal and honest in the face of what happened.

"I'm going to kill you!"

Haku's eyes widened from behind the mask as they made the connection from why the two looked so alike. "The Sharingan! He has it too? But I thought that clan only had the one survivor… No matter, I need to finish this quick! The more prolonged that this is means I will run out of Chakra faster…" Haku thought to themself with hardened resolve despite feeling the guilt that the boy that they had shared some admittedly nice moments had now flipped into a moment of raw grief.

For Ryōga on the other hand, there was nothing on his mind except the burning desire for vengeance, Haku emerged from the Mirror and made their way toward him but it looked like that they were moving in slow motion. "Flame Breathing Second Form: Rising Scorching Sun!" Ryōga yelled with a furious swing and in that briefest of instance; His sword which had been black from it's abundance of iron had caught alight into a bright orange wreathe of unruly flame, knocking away the senbon thrown at him before the Uchiha closed the gap and raised his sword high to swing again. "Fifth Form: FLAME TIGER!" He roared out with his ragged fury on full display to attack Haku; Each swing brought down radiated with the heat of an uncontrollable fire which forced the flames to manifest around him in the form of an enraged tiger baring it's fangs.

——Outside of the Mirror Prison——

Kakashi and Zabuza both felt the air grow dry even through the Hidden Mist Jutsu along with the feeling of someone's Chakra dropping instantly while the other started growing darker and colder enough for it to match the Demon of the Hidden Mist's own Chakra. "This Chakra…That's not Zabuza and it's…I should hurry!" Kakashi quickly put the pieces together that something happened to either Sasuke or Ryōga and used the blood that he accrued from getting cut to spread on a scroll.

"Gone silent, Kakashi? Because even with that Sharingan eye, I can still outclass you…The Hidden Mist Assassins are masters of killing just by sound alone!" Zabuza sneered as he readied his giant blade to strike him down for good, though he couldn't help but feel something was off but since his eyes were shut to avoid getting caught by the Sharingan; He couldn't have expected for several ninja hounds to break out of the ground and latch onto him with claws and fangs.

"You forget that there is more to me than just the Sharingan…Now we're both busy men but I can assure you that there is no more messing around…You may know me as Kakashi of the Sharingan eye but I have another name…Along with my own Jutsu!" Kakashi affirmed as he began weaving handsigns rapidly to make electricity form in his open palm. "Lightning Blade!"

——Meanwhile——

The sound of shattering was heard as back with the other fight, the burning Kenjutsu sent Haku flying off of the mirror and out into the open as the mirrors broke apart.

"Zabuza…I'm sorry but I have failed you…" Haku thought as the impact from the Flame Tiger broke not just the mirror but the mask around their face.

Ryōga was inches away from landing the final blow but stopped when he saw the familiar face under the plain looking mask. "You…You were that person from the forest…But how….What are you doing here?" He asked in an almost unbelieving tone.

"When I told you that I hoped we would meet again, this was not what I had planned…" Haku said with an unchanging expression. "But why did you stop? I had murdered your kin…struck him down right in front of your eyes and yet you stall your blade to spare me…Why?"

Ryōga felt his emotions bubble to the surface, it was a typical mantra for Ninja that no emotion whether good or bad should be worn freely in the midst of battle. This moment however was not a time that stayed in thought as the remaining Uchiha let out a stifled yell of anguish and swung his fist into Haku.

With a staggered groan and a clutching of their cheek, Haku managed to get back up. "All that power and intensity from earlier…Washed away like rain…" They thought as they looked at Ryōga with a blank stare like all the life had been sucked out. "People believe that they are a better person by sparing a life…That by refraining from killing their opponent is an act of kindness."

"Because we're Ninja…Not killers." Ryōga stated with a gaze of firm judgement, "If we just killed people purely out of impulse, we would be no better than assassins or rogues."

"You don't understand." Haku stated stiffly as they maintained their composure and carried on; "To be made to live…alone and unloved when your defeat cost you that dream you hold so dearly…"

"You make it sound like that it is the end…But you think that I can't understand how you feel? I know exactly what it means to see what you aspire to crumble into ash and forced to live…Not out of kindness or love…But pity…." Ryōga explained but then saw Haku's face falter a little to give way to understanding.

"Those eyes…Both you and that other boy share the same curse that I have…The Kekkei Genkai; I was hunted for mine and despised for it…My father killed my mother for it…My village tried to kill me for it…But when Zabuza took me in, made me his tool BECAUSE of it not despite it…I was never happier than I was then." Haku mentioned as a sad tear lingered down their pale cheek.

"And you think that it's all over because you lost? If Zabuza really cherished you for everything you said, then losing to us wouldn't change how things are! I don't like to lose, Sasuke didn't like to lose but we took those losses that we had and made ourselves stronger so it wouldn't happen again!" Ryōga stated as he pointed the tip of his sword at Haku.

"Once a tool has been thoroughly broken…You cannot restore it…Please, Ryōga…If you have any respect for me or if you truly understand how I feel then I want you to finish what you started…" Haku dismissed with an accepting tone and dropped the senbon in their hands. "I want you to end it…."

The Uchiha looked at Haku with a mix of hesitation, contemplation; "Y-You really want to give up…Just like that? I thought you said that someone can become as strong as they could have to be by their desires alone if it was worth fighting for!" Ryōga argued his point but when he saw that Haku wasn't changing or even flinching at his words, he knew that this wouldn't go any other way.

"Even IF I wanted to come back, there would be no changing what I've done…You can still accomplish your dreams even if you have to bloody your hands a thousand times over…For that, I hope you can forgive me." Haku stated with finality and stood up straight.

"Fine…Maybe if things had been different…I would have hoped you and I could have been friends, I'll make this a consolation and do this with peace and quickly." Ryōga promised as he took on a new stance; His hands gripped the sword tight and then let his body loosen from a Fire stance into a Water Stance. "Water Breathing Style! Fifth Form: Blessed Rain After the Drought…" He stated as he used what was called "A Sword of Kindness" and rushed forward towards Haku with his sword drawn back to strike.

Haku closed their eyes as they braced for what they thought was the end. "Thank you, Ryōga…I hope y-ZABUZA!" They immediately felt a chill as they felt their master's Chakra flicker and then moved their hands outward to block Ryōga's strike at the wrists, "I am sorry…But for the sake of your words…I cannot die yet!" They apologised before vanishing at a blinding speed before their opponent could even draw his sword back.

At the same time this was happening or at the very least in that infinitesimally small window of time; Kakashi rushed forward with an arm that shimmered with lightning and with a final thrust, he intended on ending Zabuza then and there…Or he had hoped.

Standing between them was Haku who was now bleeding at a much greater degree after having taken Kakashi's Lightning Blade but had deflected it to a degree so instead of landing to hit their heart, they had fallen to the ground with a hole in their shoulder from front to back. "Za…Zabuza…"

Zabuza smirked as he saw Kakashi's look of shock and went to grab his giant sword; "How wonderful of you, Haku! I really did turn up a jewel amidst the trash!" He yelled out but found himself missing the swing as Kakashi pulled back with Haku in his arms and set them down. "Hmph, though seeing as how you've gotten away…Not good enough.."

Kakashi carefully set the young ninja down but noticed something odd. "It's faint and fading fast but I can still feel their pulse, I should probably be careful in case they play possum…Sakura! You watch over them, make sure that they get back up." Kakashi ordered as he turned to face Zabuza. "This remains my fight…And I'll see it through!"

"Bold of you to say that but that technique of your's must've burned up a LOT of Chakra to use just for it to fail!" Zabuza taunted as he readied his sword again but the tension cut as a kunai hit Zabuza in the arm by an angry Ryōga while Kakashi quickly moved in while he was distracted to dislocate the other arm.

"Ryōga, I told you to stay out! But this works out perfectly…I've already told you, Zabuza. Your future only holds death and this time…I mean it!" Kakashi remarked as he pulled out another kunai from his pouch. "No arms means no Jutsu or handsigns…This is it for you!"

"Well…He's certainly made a fine mess of you! Mr. so called Demon of the Hidden Mists!" A shrill but very recognisable voice was heard as a small man with shades and a gaggle of other mercenaries and renegades stood behind him, The man behind it all known as Gato.

"Gato…I'm guessing you and your friends here aren't stopping by for a social visit?" Zabuza sneered as he glared at the smaller man and the mob behind him.

"This is true…There's a change of plans now, more specifically regarding your talk of payment…" Gato drawled back as his eyes turned greedy behind his dark glasses; "You see, why hire village Ninja when they can object if you kill their friends while the rogues…Like you and the cold little bitch on the floor…Are cheaper and a lot more disposable."

"You cowardly little weasel!" Zabuza growled as he realised exactly where this was heading. "So this is your idea of a layoff?"

"And like that, you get it right on the money…Just not on MY money that is." Gato smirked as he saw Haku on the ground and pressed the heel of his expensive looking shoe against the fallen Ninja's ribs before kicking them. "I had hoped to let this one be an example of what happens when you raise a hand to me but I guess you Ninja like to make things messy."

"Bastard!" Ryōga's voice called out as he rushed over to get at Gato but was stopped by Kakashi grabbing him.

"Ryōga, calm down! There's too many of them to fight in the condition that anyone here is in." Kakashi urged him but was quickly dismissed as the younger Ninja pulled his arm away.

"No, I won't!" Ryōga yelled before staring daggers at Zabuza; "How can you stand there and do nothing while this slimy asshole disrespects your friend like that!?"

Zabuza kept silent and didn't even bother dignifying them by looking at Ryōga. "And what exactly did you want me to do? Throw a tantrum like a child? Haku's dead…Plain and simple, you think I would care for a brat like that? Gato used me while I used Haku. In a world of Ninja, you can either be used like a tool or use the tools."

"That is…"

Kakashi could tell that Ryōga was rearing up for something nasty; He felt one of the Uchiha's chakra stop completely and on seeing Ryōga when the fog cleared meant the worst but somehow he could sense a Chakra signature even though it was very, very weak. "Ryōga stop! Antagonising Zabuza like that when he isn't an enemy anymore won't change a thing!"

"Screw that! He's still MY enemy!" Ryōga snapped and fully directed his anger on Zabuza's back. "You and Haku have been friends all this time! They dedicated all of this time to you and pushed themselves to the very end just for you to act like their sacrifice meant nothing?! Purely because YOU think that they were nothing more than an ice throwing tool!"

Everyone was quiet on the matter barring Gato's snickering and the group of rogues behind him. "Who is this kid? He's yapping like a little dog and making himself look foolish."

"THEIR DREAM WAS TO ENSURE YOU COULD FOLLOW YOUR'S! And all you can say for that is they were nothing but a tool?! They gave their life and dedication to you…How cruel can you be to just…snub them like that?" Ryōga continued to yell and tears stung his eyes as he felt that Haku's story resonated far too much with his own. "It's…too cruel…Even for Ninja…"

"Kid…" Zabuza finally spoke up; His voice no longer held disdain, mockery or even a hint of malice as he turned to face Ryōga with sadness plastered on his face and the budding tears as grief came to the surface. "Don't…Just…Not another word…" He mumbled as he turned to face Gato and the others. "What Haku did…It wasn't just for my sake, they fought me on dealing with you and those other two kids…Even a Hunter-nin like them couldn't bring themselves to end what they called budding sparks…" Zabuza used his mouth to rip open his face wrappings before looking at the Ninja that fought him to a standstill. "Kakashi…Since my job here is dissolved, you and I are no longer enemies, right? Lend me a kunai knife if you still have one."

Kakashi looked at Zabuza closely before realising what it was that he planned to do. "Here…" He said with a faint hint of reservation as he threw a kunai over to Zabuza.

Once the Demon of the Mists grabbed the knife in his mouth, he shot off towards Gato and his men with blinding speed; His fierceness and his singleminded tenacity pushed him through several kills until he finally managed to put an end to Gato himself by ripping out his throat. "Hey…Hey Kid! Get over here…While I can still talk…And bring your teacher too…" He yelled hoarsely as he finally collapsed to the ground.

Kakashi looked confused as he walked over with Ryōga to the collapsed Zabuza; "You've certainly proven yourself to be a demon, in name AND in battle…" He snarked as he looked over the Hidden Mist Nin.

"Very funny…I know I don't have the right to ask this…But if Haku DOES live through this…I want you to help them find a better life…Someone like them doesn't deserve to thrust themselves into a cruel world like mine…" Zabuza requested to both of them but mainly to Ryōga since he managed to find a certain kind of respect for the Uchiha boy like he had in Kakashi.

"We can! Can't we?" Ryōga asked Kakashi, since he realised that Haku was still alive somehow but barely hanging on was enough for him.

"If we can get them treatment and healing, they'll live. Though the problem with this is that it's gonna take some time and a LOT of convincing on our part, but we can at least ensure they can recover enough to decide how they want to progress." Kakashi mentioned, reiterating to Zabuza that even though Haku was barely older than Sasuke or Ryōga, they were still technically a rogue Ninja from another nation.

"Then they can stay with us…People always said that the Uchiha functioned as Konoha's police force…That and…I think it falls to me to watch out for them after they killed Sasuke…" Ryōga mentioned with a somewhat hopeful tone but gradually became serious when the topic fell on Sasuke.

"I already told you…Haku wouldn't have wanted to see either of you two boys die…Knowing them, what happened to the other Chakra was probably what they did to me back in the forest." Zabuza pointed out but felt his body seize as he got closer to the brink.

"We can discuss it with the Hokage…But I truly can't promise anything…" Kakashi warned the both of them as he looked to the boy. "Though the fact that this Haku kid has both a Kekkei Genkai AND is exceptionally skilled might help to appease the council enough to consider a probationary period."

 "I'm not asking you take Haku in as an adopted kid! I just…I just want her find a new life, you can do that much…Can't you?"

"W-Wait, she?" There was only one thought in Ryōga's mind as he slowly passed out from the adrenaline, body shutdown and extensive Chakra use from the Sharingan getting awakened like it did.


"RYŌGA!" Kakashi yelled as he saw the Uchiha boy pass out and collapse to the ground in a heap, the horde of surviving rogues looked ready to pounce but were finally stopped when the cavalry of Villagers showed up with Inari heading up with a crossbow in hand.

They finally won...