It took him a single glance, on that one mission.

As ANBU captain, Momochi Zabuza was required to complete missions, along with his subordinates, dealing with foreign ninja entering his homeland. He supposed it was necessary, as no shinobi had the intention of crossing Mizu no Kuni borders in peace.

So he went. It was mere coincidence that he faced a different squad of leaf ninja, they were wearing masks of course, but he was able to distinguish them by their jutsus, speed and stealth. As soon as they were seen by the Konoha nin, battle mode kicked in. If there was something Zabuza learned during his career, it was that leaf ninja acted on impulse, relying on their natural instinct to take over. It was pathetic. However, his ninja strategised, planned and most importantly, they were silent.

Yes, he had to admit, they were small in number. Very few of kirigakure's ninja made it to jonin level. Heck, not even genin level. And everyone knew why. But the result was rewarding. That allowed the village to gain their best assets by filtering out not only the strongest ninja, but the ones that could stomach murder.

The demon was given a very skilled group that day, all exceeded in ninjutsu, genjutsu and taijutsu. He was thankful for that, at least. It meant he didn't have to worry about any casualties or corpses he had to carry back home.

In the midst of battle however, he did notice something. Or someone. Whilst ripping an opponent to shreds, His line of sight wavered and caught a glimpse of a figure, battling it's way into the sea of bodies for it's dear life. Her dear life. She was the only female in their squad, being the reason he could distinguish her from the others and the fact that he had never seen this kunoichi before. He watched her, as she tried to counter an attack. This one was different. She was clever. And fierce. His gaze was broken, when for the first time, his eyes met hers. She also paused, puzzled. It was only seconds before the enemy ninja made the call to fall back. And so they fled.

The enemy were clearly outmatched, fleeing the scene, saving any more bloodshed on their part. Zabuza had never really understood the concept of teamwork, comradeship. The very words were foreign to him and the sound of it made him cringe. They were...unecessary to become a ninja. In some cases, it hindered the development of genin into fully fledged ninja. Too much dependance on your comrades could get you killed. So the dreaded genin exam was created. It taught them how to be independent, and one very important lesson.

The shinobi world was no fairytale. It was every man for himself.

And Mizukage Sama was ultimately pleased with the ninja he had moulded. They were stoic, and unaffected by external circumstances. The very idea of morphing academy students into murderers was inhumane, but it was effective. Very effective. Their goal? It was entirely up to them. Whether it was to protect the village, protect the Hokage, protect themselves, as long as they fought. As long as they followed his orders. And Mizukage sama's system made them believe those goals were achievable.

Zabuza had paused, when his ninja began to clean up the mess. He watched as the leaf-nin fled, as the purple haired kunoichi held her wounded arm in attempt to stop the bleeding. He thought it was the first, and last time he'd ever see her again. The man next to her turned to face the girl.

'You okay Anko?'

'I'm fine.'

Anko.

After that, he couldn't stop thinking about it. He was permanently fixed. He'd catch himself repeating the name, before snapping back to reality.

It ridiculously irked him.

He filed a report on the mission, considering it a success as most of the enemy ninja were either injured or dead. He was following orders. His orders. Killing foreign ninja without information about their intent was unnecessary, and a waste of his time and energy. He didn't mind the bloodshed, of all people. It fed his lust for murder, and allowed him to take his anger out on others that were blameless. And technically, they were to blame. For just being. Their presence was the cause of their own downfall.

By the time he got home, he was greeted by his newly acquired student. He rested, and let his mind wonder. Nothing like this ever bothered him this much, especially not a woman. He could never understand the outlook of women. He never really wanted to. Zabuza constantly reminded hmself his own self-imposed rule to prevent any involvement with the opposite sex. Life felt easier that way.

And it was because of this rule, he hated it when he found himself staring at the wrong places, distracting himself. He was a ninja, a great ninja. He had no time for these things.

And with that thought, he could only think of one thing. Anko.

The demon had attempted to find her in the bingo books, but found nothing. Perhaps she was a new recruit? Or maybe she just went unoticed? No. No ninja that moved that swiftly and accurately would go unoticed. So he went with the former. Not many kunocihi accompany ANBU tracker missions and assuming she was a new recruit, this one had to be something special. And more importantly, could pose a threat.

Zabuza grimaced, he was wasting time. Again. He got up and left home, finding some other thing to occupy himself.

Another mission. Perfect.

Much to his dismay, it was a spying mission in Hi no Kuni. Which meant there was no killing involved, just observation and if the situation called for it, interrogation.

It was an insult really. His skills were much more useful dealing with assassinations. A mission as such required strength, a characteristic he valued in himself. But interrogating someone? It was difficult for him. He could only go so far with asking a target questions, as he went further into the conversation they eventually became suspicous, eyeing him and became hesitant in revealing any more information. Zabuza wasn't the friendliest ninja around, so it came to no surprise he was denied any answers just by looking at him.

On the plus side, at least he wasn't required to bring along his ANBU gear, to prevent any alert from the local ninja. Which was why he sealed his sword in a scroll. Anyone could recognise the vicous thing a mile away.

He had completed the mission and was ready for departure. He thought again. A drink perhaps? He pondered at the idea, and decided to spoil himself tonight.

To be honest, he hated alcohol. Or more specifically, the effects of alcohol. Anything that clouded his judgement or make his vision blur was something he attempted to avoid. But Zabuza was smart. He knew to keep things in moderation. A glass was his limit. Nothing more. It saved him from stumbling around like a fool, and most likely preventing a hangover the next morning. One drink every now and then was enough for him. Hence, he came to the conclusion that there were two things that put a man's conscious at bay: Women and alcohol. He avoided both.

Zabuza arrived at the nearest bar, making his order and waited. He glanced at his filthy surroundings and a group of rowdy leaf nin caught his attention. He recognised a few by their voices and if his instincts were to be believed, they were most probably drunk.

As soon as he got what he asked for, he'd leave immediately. Stupid leaf nin, being all...cheery.

But something else stole his attention. He heard someone sit a distance away from him. It was late and the noisy leaf nin had left. He wasn't at all bothered to turn his head so he sat there, staring at the wooden table, realising they were the only ones left. He heard a female voice.

'I'll have one drink, thanks.'

'No problem, Anko-chan.'

Anko.

No. It couldn't be. Of all the people. He froze, as the bartender finally served his drink. 'Enjoy.'

He didn't respond. This was becoming too much of a coincidence. The same kunoichi he fought against only a day ago was having a drink next to him. He was able to hear her eating something and turned his head slightly at her direction. Honestly, how many Ankos were there living in Konoha? He saw a flash of purple hair. Yep, that was her.

It was dango. He could tell by the smell. She hadn't noticed the demon across from her table, too absorbed in what she was eating. She wore her regular clothing, but Zabuza easily noticed that purple hair of hers that was suddenly becoming a hindrance as it swayed to and fro as she ate. He had to leave. Now. But he stayed. He lingered, taking a sip of his glass every now and then. She finished her meal, and he his drink. Dango stained her clothes and Zabuza cringed. He shifted.

Zabuza didn't know what made him do it, call it personal heigene practices, he passed a cloth to her side of the bench without making eye contact. Anko, who only realised his gesture a few seconds later, looked at the fabric, and then at him. She grimaced.

'What the hell is this?' She spat, clearly insulted by the gesture.

He said nothing, but she continued to eye him accusingly. Zabuza sighed, still refusing to make eye contact with her. 'It's a napkin.'

Good Lord.

The kunoichi scanned him from top to bottom. A mist ninja. She thought, noticing his hitae ite. It's slightly slanted angle, and the state of his uncombed hair would've made her recall him from their previous battle, if it weren't for her unbelievable short term memory.

'Mist ninja eh?'

He nodded.

'I'd never have guessed.' Silence ensued, as she continued to analyse him. She swore she recognised this ninja before...

'What happened to the arm?' He asked, breaking the silence whilst noticing her bandaged forearm.

She scoffed. 'One of your bastards did that to me.' She paused. Should she really have said that? She could have revealed her identity just then. She took the given cloth and cleaned the stains off her face. While she pondered, she noticed a smirk on that smug face.

'What?'

'You should be a bit more careful, don't you think? A wound like that is quite embarrassing.'He looked at her, as she pulled a face.

This was fun.

'I don't know what they teach you in that hellhole, but wounds are a symbol of endurance, and effort. And it is definitely not embarassing.'

She met his dark, brown eyes. 'A wound is a weakness. It shows that you let your guard down and let your opponent take advantage of you.'

Those eyes...it finally hit her.

The man that caught her gaze for that one second, the one that chose to remain still as she was open for an attack. That gaze wavered, however, when she felt the sudden rush of pain and an increase in her blood flow. Then she fell, and immediately responded to their captain's call, cursing that lapse in concentration that allowed her opponent to get the upper hand.

Her eyes widened, 'That was you-

Zabuza chuckled, still maintaining his stoic manner. 'Goodnight Anko-chan.'

And with that, he was gone, leaving a bewildered purple haired kunoichi stunned.

It could never happen. They were both human, but they were also ninja. They forever will be ninja. And so it could never happen, and it never will. If they met in another place, another time...he decided not to think about that.

And even if he wanted to, consequences were inevitable. What would his people think of him? A disgrace, if not an embarrassment. She was the enemy, it would be treason to allow such a thing. Too much would be at stake. And there was one thing, one particular thing he couldn't afford to risk.

In the next few days, Kirigakure will be at the palm of his hand and time was the absolute essence. There was something greater he strived to conquer. He did what his kage had told him. He fought, and he fought, and he fought. And his goal was indeed, entirely up to him. And Momochi Zabuza had no intention of letting anything get in his way.

And with that thought, Mitarashi Anko was forgotten.