Naruto has many great plots with emotional backstories. With its captivating characters, fight scenes, and lessons, it is one of the most outstanding shonen series of all time. From the death of "Pervy Sage" Jiraiya to Neji and Obito, among others, the anime has many tragic characters. Looking back on the series of misfortunes that lords over the show, Masashi Kishimoto enchanted Otakus with the beautiful world of the Shinobi only to lure them into the deeply felt tragedies that accompany it. One of the many sad stories in Naruto is Haku and Zabuza's complicated relationship, a one-sided love that grew into something powerful.
Why Naruto & Hinata Were Always Meant To End Up Together
From a young age, Haku was an orphaned beggar with a dark and troubled past. Haku was endowed with the rare ability of demonic mirroring ice crystals. His father realizes the dangerous powers, killed his mother and sets out to also kill Haku. Haku, on the other hand, killed his father in self-defense. Following his parents' tragic deaths, he took to the streets to fend for himself. During this dark period, he met Zabuza, who saw only a young boy with tremendous power. Zabuza made him his sidekick in order for him to use his power selfishly and for no other reason. But Haku admired and worshiped him because he was the first person to care for him.
Moreover, Zabuza, who treated Haku as nothing more than a tool, bears no responsibility for Haku's unrequited love. Zabuza's upbringing shaped him to be cold and unresponsive to non-ninja situations. His final test to become a full-fledged ninja took a toll on him as a young boy during his training in the Land of the Hidden Mist. To pass the Hidden Mist Exam, the trainees had to kill each other in the final test. Zabuza was called the 'demon' for killing 100 of his classmates, who he had trained and played with for years. Young Zabuza carried this scar and burden all through his life, knowing he was a tool that could easily be discarded. So, while Haku saw a man he loves and cares for, Zabuza only saw an opportunity to use a killing machine.
The Different Types Of Ninja In Naruto, Explained
In the anime, Naruto and his team, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi, encountered Haku and Zabuza in the Land of the Waves. The Hidden Leaf Ninjas were on a mission to protect a man who planned to build a bridge to help a poor village. However, Gator, the village mobster, do not want the villagers to be liberated from his shackles because their afflictions make him powerful. Gato hired the assassin duo, Haku and Zabuza, to halt the bridge's construction. During the faceoff with Naruto's team, in what could have been Zabuza's final moment, Haku shielded him and died in the process. In this instance, Naruto's motivational speech ensues as he is appalled by Zabuza's behaviour and taken aback by Haku's unquestionable love and loyalty for Zabuza. In Haku's final moment, Zabuza is moved by Naruto's words and realizes the deep love Haku has for him.
Looking at the duo's intricate relationship, Zabuza always knew Haku loved him, but his rigidity could not make him disremember his past nor abandon his philosophy. He was easily carried away by Naruto's speech, to the point of crying, for a man who feels no emotion. Realistically, it wouldn't take such a short time to change Zabuza's heart of stone, no matter how compelling a speaker one is. For Zabuza, the tears don't only come because he hates the man he is but because he also has feelings for Haku, which is buried to preserve his doctrine and belief. Now that Haku is gone, he will never know the truth that Zabuza has always loved him.
Naruto's speech was just a nudge (like Naruto's headbutt to Gaara) to unearth the feelings Zabuza already had for Haku. Masashi Kishimoto gave the perfect closure for the duo; they died together, side by side and were buried side by side. This act is somehow similar to "'Shinju", where lovers die together for a chance at the afterlife. From Zabuza's last few words to her, he said, "if I could…I'd like to go to the same place as you". In his final moments, Zabuza despised what the world had made him and how he had tainted and poisoned his only love. In the end, "a Shinobi is still human…".