Reflections of Demons
Reflections of Demons is a rather well done Alt Fic, Naruto fic by evil_genius, found on fanfiction.net. It was inspired by a very good one shot by another user, and has inspired at least one other fic based off its Canon and a challenge by Evil.
The premise is simple-- during the battle of the bridge, Haku's mirrors revert to their true purpose-- reflecting, as all mirrors do, only the truth before them.
It reflects the truth of Naruto's life before him. Instead of Naruto's first kill, we have a Haku who finds a kindred soul and decides he must help. And when his mentor Zabuza hears how Konoha treats the young man holding the Nine-Tail, he's rightly pissed-- as stories of Konoha inspired his attempted coup against the Kiri leadership.
The idea of Haku and Zabuza joining Konoha is done here surprisingly well. Zabuza's character is developed rather nicely into a hardened, but caring man. It's also one of the few fics where Haku retains his gender, unlike what happens in... a good number of fanfiction involving Haku.
There is some [deserved] Konoha bashing over the treatment of Naruto-- but we also see the good side of Hidden Leaf. We see the Sandaime and the village Councils portrayed not as evil or ineffectual, but trying to deal with the choices made to protect the son of one of their greatest leaders.
The fic believably takes us to a point where Haku and Zabuza really want to help Naruto like he helped them. Naruto is eager, but there's also the resistance of stubborn habit because he's been on his own for so long.
The ripples from this simple relationship hit everyone, and several characters are given an "underneath the underneath" that fits what the manga to that point had established very well. From a slowly defrosting Sasuke, to a Sakura slowly realising she's needs to change her attitude to truly be a ninja, to even the politics of the village being hit-- the changes are so natural and gradual, by the time the Chuunin Exams roll around you blink and realise the characters are exactly where this story took them.
Also. Best. Gai. Lee. Scene. EVER. In. A. Fic.
- Big Brother Mentor: Haku and Iruka to Naruto.
- Bunny Ears Lawyer: Lampshaded multiple times, when all the most powerful ninja in Konoha are BARELY sane (Kakashi, Anko, GAI...).
- Don't forget OROCHIMARU! albeit this is dismissed for him being evil scientist seeker of immortality...
- And for some reason, foreign ninja entering Konoha's territory will somehow shown the symptoms. Zabuza and Haku seem to barely escaped the plague, Kankuro does not.
- On the other hand, Haku has a quirk preloaded, being a Wholesome Crossdresser. It's low key compared to the Konoha norm, though.
- Brain Bleach: Most people in Konoha have gotten used to Gai's quirks, though they do tend to show some obvious discomfort when he gets going. However, first time exposure can cause one to Go Mad from the Revelation...
- They have this in fic. It's a drink called "Dosing the Flames of Youth". It was made to counter Gai's effect on people:
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Word of God: "So I thought I would all allow you to know what was in the drink: 'Dousing the flames of Youth!' 1) Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: Jack Daniels, Jim Bean, Johnnie Walker and Jose Cuervo 2) Water and 3) Disulfiram a drug used to treat alcoholism, this is to prevent those that have more than 2 shots from dieing from alcohol poisoning…Yes, you are right, that will kill the brain cells that have just seen a Gai moment!" |
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- Cool Teacher: Haku. Even the Konohamaru Corps approve. But then, it suits him.
- Cynical Mentor: Both Zabuza and Kakashi are this; they can also switch to Sink or Swim Mentor mode when someone [1] needs a wake up call, as seen in chapter 4 part 3 when Naruto and Sakura prove to understand Zabuza and Kakashi's team building exercises and someone [2]... doesn't.
- Glomp: How Naruto tends to greet Iruka. His adoptive older brother sees it as a sign of Naruto's innate innocence.
- An Ice Person: Haku, via his bloodline.
- Kuudere: This seems to be Haku's baseline attitude in this alt.
- Lampshade Hanging: On fem!Haku fic. Haku changes outfits just so Sakura will accept he's not another girl who might "compete" for Sasuke's attentions.
- Not only has the Kakashi "not really teaching them much, is he?" concept been lampshaded, but it's been Deconstructed. Kakashi responds to Zabuza's What the Hell, Hero? speech about his approach to Team Seven with a laundry list of further reasons the situation sucks. He also notes that those that he might have wanted to help are hamstrung by their own past good intentions.
- Also on Bunny Ears Lawyer, see above-- complete with the in-universe Brain Bleach
- Lack of Empathy: While going the extra mile to be nice and protective of Naruto, Haku, Zabuza and the Author had it hard for Sasuke. He is called and snarked left and right for being an emo and needing to grow up and take his head out of his ass... forgetting that he is like that because Itachi brutally murdered his entire clan and forced him to watch for 3 days. At age 7. While crying at the same time for the difficult and lonely life Naruto had to suffer... What?.
- Mama Bear and Papa Wolf: Several. If anything, the fic seeks to Lampshade how this attitude and the best intentions can lead to unfortunate side effects.
- Rouge Angles of Satin: One fault that does jump out at you. Also some Wanton Cruelty to the Common Comma, in that Evil seems to under use it.
- Shell-Shocked Veteran: Kakashi shows signs of this. Understandable, given his back story.
- On a humorous note, everyone is this regarding Gai's presence, except Lee maybe.
- Village of Hats: Producing Bunny Eared, Crazy Awesome Ninja seems to be Konoha's hat.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Haku and Zabuza feel this way about Konoha, as they saw it as a model for what Kiri would be if their coup had worked. They are understandably disappointed in how Naruto's been treated.
- A lot of the residents of Hidden Leaf feel this way about parts of the village, and are fully willing to admit they've paved the road with good intentions and just hope it's not heading to hell.
- Ibiki, hard as nails head of Torture and Interrogation, starts wondering if he can keep handling Zabuza and Haku's entrance into the village and overseeing their interactions with Naruto after some of the things it reveals.
- A lot of the residents of Hidden Leaf feel this way about parts of the village, and are fully willing to admit they've paved the road with good intentions and just hope it's not heading to hell.