Here we go again! You knew it was coming, and here it is. This is a debate about the ever-popular issue of Haku's true gender. If you have already made up your mind on the issue and refuse to listen to the other side, then don't bother reading because you are hard headed and no amount of proof will convince you. This goes for those who think Haku was a girl as well.
No posts only stating "Haku was a boy/girl get over it", or something like that. This is a topic meant for discussion.
Quote and agree with peoples' points if you want, but please, no short posts that simply state a belief with no reason why you hold that belief. That is what fan clubs are for.
The debate is divided into two sides: The Geishaku and the Hakubuki, which are terms I made up myself. The Geishaku are the "Girl Haku" side and the term is derived from Geisha + Haku. The Hakubuki are the "Boy Haku" side and the term is derived from Haku + Kabuki. Clever, I know.
There are some references to sexuality in this post, but it is by no means graphic or inappropriate. Still, if you are not comfortable with reading such content, then please do not read the topic.
Flaming is not necessary or wanted in this topic. This is not an issue to get so worked up about. I've seen people get worked up over a lot less. If you cannot discuss the issue maturely, then leave now. Believe it!
The basic outline of this topic's first post is that I will disprove the popular theory, or at least cast a considerable shadow of a doubt on it.
Then I will state the evidence I have found to back up my claim of Haku being a girl and not a boy.
Lastly, I will address any evidence contrary to my theory and explain any discrepancies.
The remainder of the topic is dedicated to counter points and discussion.
Quick reference (ctrl+f then search the following terms):
The issue.
Why is there even an argument?
By the way
2. Haku
Haku had been a girl
self loathing
Zabuza calls Haku a "kid".
Haku's Appearance
What was Zabuza's take on all of this?
The Smoking Gun
Counter Evidence
Conclusion
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The issue.
The reason why most people think that Haku was a boy is because she was referred to as a boy by almost every character connected to her (be it through comradeship or through rivalry). The foremost reason however is because Haku referred to herself as a boy. While most fans simply accept this and move on, there is actually much more evidence to suggest the contrary is true.
Why is there even an argument?
Meaning, aren't all of the references to Haku being a boy undeniable proof that she is one? The answer is clearly no, because this issue is not so cut and dry as one might think. First, let's take a look at why people think Haku was a boy. The main, and perhaps only reason is because of the references to her being a boy. That is it. Haku looks nothing like a boy. In fact, Haku is described by the series to be more beautiful than Sakura, the series' flagship heroine. Therefore, if we can prove that there is a possibility that those references are inaccurate, the theory will become less likely to be correct.
(I take this back. One of the foremost reasons is because some people think that Kishimoto, the creator of the series said that Haku was a boy. This is completely FALSE. No statement has ever been made or found to be cited as a reference.)
Before this however, we must ask ourselves what would prove one theory or the other to be correct.
1. Most obviously the sight of the physical traits of the respective gender on Haku while she is either dead, unconscious, or in a situation where transformation jutsus could not have been present (i.e. while a sharingah was active and on her since it can detect when jutsus are being used, or when such a jutsu would be impossible to preform or maintain).
This proof is also an unlikely occurrence since this is a series that is geared toward kids. Haku is also dead and buried. So any character development for Haku has probably already happened. (Though I have heard of a slight reference to Haku in later episodes tied in with a character named Kimikaro. It is also possible that Haku's story will be told through retroactive continuity.)
2. Haku showing sexual attraction toward someone. Simply put: If Haku shows sexual attraction to females, then Haku is a boy. If Haku shows sexual attraction to males, then Haku is a girl. Of course this only works on the basis that Haku is heterosexual, but this is a series that is geared toward younger audiences. So Haku being homosexual is very unlikely, especially since Haku is about 15 years old in the series and especially since there are higher standards in America for kid shows. The heterosexual attraction is the most logical conclusion since it is also the most common type of attraction (especially in the Naruto series). Anyone claiming that Haku's sexual attraction does not matter to this issue must also prove that a homosexual attraction is possible and likely, since that would be the only proof that would make it not matter.
3. Reference to gender by characters outside of Haku's present role. For example, Haku's flashback in the anime presents Haku's mother. If the mother were to call Haku a girl, then that would settle that. The same may not be true for the alternative reference of "boy" since it is a flashback being told by one who uses "boy" for self-reference. It would depend on how the flashback is portrayed. If it comes from Haku's point of view and is told to someone else, then it could be altered in that way to support Haku's present day role of being a boy. If the flashback were actually the past being told by the series itself or through narrative style (retcon), then any reference would be canon and correct. Also, if Haku were to remember the reference through introspection and not through revealing it to anyone, then any reference would be canon and correct.
Unfortunately, the flashback features the mother calling Haku a "child" and not identifying her as either boy or girl. Future episodes or issues may contain flashbacks such as these.
4. Clear statements by the writer of the series. Obviously he is the one to listen to if you want to know something about a series.
Now, I have found at least one of these that prove Haku was most definitely a girl, but like I said, I will first disprove the popular theory.
If Haku had been a girl, why did she call herself a boy?
A few explanations exist for this fact and most work together as one theory. The first and most likely is that she does this to conceal her identity and protect herself from being easily tracked down by the true tracker ninja. This way, the target known to the trackers as Haku would be a boy that dressed like a girl, rather than a girl that dressed like a girl, or perhaps the description was not that detailed. Perhaps they were hunting for Zabuza and a boy, period. This means that while Haku is without the mask, she was a lot less suspicious because she truly did look like a girl. Suppose that Zabuza and Haku did not die on the bridge but instead escaped from Kakashi and the students. What would Kakashi and his students have told any trackers that could have questioned them? Exactly what they thought, which was that Haku was a boy. They may have also added that Haku dressed like a girl, but if they did, Haku would have the "credentials" to prove that she was not a boy. That is why it makes more sense for Haku to give her enemies false information about herself.
To support this theory, we must remember one of Haku's codes of life, or nindo. Deception. Deceiving the enemy is how Haku was introduced. Therefore, isn't it likely that calling herself a boy is just another deception? Think about this. Haku called herself a tracker and said that she had been tracking Zabuza for some time waiting for a chance to take him down, but did that automatically make her a tracker ninja or make anything she said the truth? No.
So then it is logical to conclude that saying she is something and truly being it can be two different things.
Haku wrote:
"...deceiving your opponent, catching them off guard, that is the art of the shinobi."
Haku wanted to be a shinobi more than anything. Therefore, her telling Naruto the truth about herself in the woods that day would have contradicted this desire.
Now lets look at this from the other perspective. Let us assume in this paragraph that Haku was a boy. He dressed like a girl to throw of the trackers and likely any opponent as well. Why then would Haku reveal to the opponent that he is a boy and not a girl? What reason could there be for this? Anyone who hears this can report to the trackers that Haku is a boy that looked and dressed like a girl. Haku's cover would be blown. Such a person would be easier to track down. So now I hope you are getting a better idea of where the Geishaku (Girl Haku theorists) are coming from.
Another consistent theory works under the possibility that Haku did not want boys to hit on her, but this is because she had eyes for only one man, namely Zabuza. Therefore the self-reference of being a boy was not based on relationships with strangers. Instead this was based on her relationship with Zabuza. You may be asking how Haku's pretending to be a boy actually helps her relationship with Zabuza. This is actually very simple, and such a concept could indeed help their relationship. The following is an image from the Naruto manga.
https://img101.imageshack.us/img101/2481/haku1xw7.jpg
Now aside from the images of a person who looks very much like a girl, this page depicts Zabuza stating that what he really needed was not consolation or encouragement but rather a weapon or a tool, as Haku interrupts and suggests in another strip. Therefore, Haku thinking of herself as Zabuza's female companion would be less productive than thinking of herself as a tool. To do this, referring to her as a male could actually be a way of eliminating the gender differences and any possible sexual tension between them. In this way Haku changed in order to please Zabuza and make him more comfortable, which was her primary goal after joining up with him.
Along with this theory I also submit the concept of self loathing. This means that Haku resented her female gender to a certain extent. To prove this, I submit the following image.
https://img204.imageshack.us/img204/8897/haku5vz9.jpg
In this strip, Haku is telling Naruto about her childhood. When the bloodline trait was discovered within Haku it made her an outcast. She was feared and hated for her bloodline trait. Zabuza took her in and gave her life purpose, hence the sentimental statement "I was so happy!!" in the last image.
https://img160.imageshack.us/img160/9483/haku6wn8.jpg
Haku definitely had some feeling for Zabuza because he desired what everyone else rejected her for.
https://img87.imageshack.us/img87/1476/haku2xe3.jpg
Having been beaten by Naruto, Haku requested death when she discovered that she had not become a tool that could protect Zabuza. After that purpose was taken away, Haku stood ready to accept death, knowing that Zabuza only used her for that purpose.
Now the thing to notice here is that in these instances, Haku stopped referring to herself as a boy. Instead she referred to herself as a person. This is an instance of Haku reverting back to the truth. There is simply no reason to refer to her past self as a "person" when the one being told the story is already under the impression that this person is a boy. This is also the case in the Japanese manga and anime.
Haku is going back to being her true self. Why? It is because her present role had been taken away. She had been forced back into the state that she was in before meeting Zabuza, which was seen as worthless AND human, moreover, a person who was not a boy.
This is identical to the way Haku's mask falls off. It is somewhat symbolic of that. Naruto destroyed the mask and now the façade of being a boy crumbles to reveal the true self, simultaneously the weapon is broken and now all that is left is the "unwanted PERSON". Remember, Haku was facing death at that point. So facing the truth about herself could have in fact been her way of coping with her approaching death, which again leads back to the point of self-loathing. Feeling bad about herself made it easier for her to accept death.
Another point to bring up is that Haku did not refer to herself as a boy to Zabuza. She called herself his weapon and she also called herself a kid in the anime and manga.
https://img85.imageshack.us/img85/3128/haku4ug6.png
Now, the main problem in the Hakubuki theory is that Haku told Naruto that she was a boy. You may ask how that could do anything but help that theory let alone hinder it. This is because if Haku had been a boy, then when Haku told Naruto that she was a boy it would not make any sense, and it would be a contradiction of the facts in the series. First of all, it would contradict Haku's nindo, which was to deceive the enemy, not tell them the truth. Second, it would contradict the efforts to look like a girl. Obviously had Haku been a boy, Haku's appearance as a girl would have been a disguise. Yet the disguise and all effort to present and maintain it would be contradicted and made worthless by revealing the true gender. Third, this would put Haku at great risk of being discovered as Zabuza's partner, and it would give Naruto true information to pass on to any trackers that could have questioned him. This is why Haku telling Naruto the truth does not make sense in the context of the series.
So there is one reference to being a boy down, and two to go. The second set of references belongs to Kakashi. The Hakubukies could argue that Kakashi is a credible source or judge of character because of his experience and sharingan. However, to claim such a thing would be false. First of all, there is no evidence that the sharingan reveals another person's gender, despite evidence that it allows one to manipulate another's actions. Second, Kakashi made the mistake of assuming that Haku was a tracker when she obviously was not. Therefore, Kakashi is not a credible source. His first impression of Haku could have been nothing but a common assumption that was perhaps based on factors that were also meant to deceive opponents. Or perhaps Kakashi could not tell what gender Haku was, so he just went with the generic assumption of her being a male, since there are statistically more male ANBU than female.
Also, Kakashi's references to Haku being a boy are contradicted by Naruto's references to Haku being a girl. Naruto called Haku "sis" or "lady", so Naruto's unbiased impression of Haku was that she was female. We cannot regard Kakashi's opinion and not Naruto's, neither in context of the series or outside the context of the series as a real life hint to Haku's gender. This contradiction could in fact be an effort to maintain the mystery behind Haku's true gender.
The third set of references is from Zabuza. Notice in the flashback, as depicted above, Zabuza called Haku a "kid". All other references to Haku being a boy could easily be dismissed as Zabuza encouraging the misguided belief that Haku was a boy, which was the belief that everyone else in the series held.
As for the numerous references to being a boy by Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto, they can all be outright dismissed as conclusions drawn from Haku's deception and Kakashi's assumption.
Haku's Appearance
Some try to argue that Haku was a boy with feminine features but because the suggestion is baseless, the example of Haku meeting Naruto in the woods is brought up. When Haku bent forward to check on Naruto, they say that cleavage cannot be seen. The reason cleavage cannot be seen is simply because Haku did not have large breasts. By the same token, I cannot say that Haku was a girl just because she had no Adam's apple (or that one could not be seen). This is because some males do not have Adam's apples that stick out or are always visible.
Haku could have in fact had small breasts, since such a thing could have been in her genetics. Her mother is a good example of this.
https://img101.imageshack.us/img101/7938/hakucuu8.png
Her mother had small breasts, even though she was an adult. Haku, since she was only fifteen, may not have been one to develop until adulthood.
Another possibility is that Haku had breasts but they were simply not visible in that one scene. Anyway, it is a lame argument to say that Haku had no breasts just because they cannot be seen. The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.
Haku's appearance is perhaps the second strongest argument for the Geishaku, and this is because Haku looked exactly like a girl. Haku was drawn with the same art style or character design used to draw female characters, Haku also has long hair, feathered eyelashes, painted finger and toenails, girl clothing, and platform sandals.
Granted, it does not take a girl to dress like a girl and any boy could do the same thing, but why would a boy want to do that? Like before, if Haku were a boy and went through all the trouble to look like a girl, why outright state that "he" was really a boy? Also, why would a person like Zabuza let a boy that dressed as a girl be his partner? Of course it would still be for the bloodline trait, but I mean why wouldn't Zabuza order a boy to dress like one? Yes, in the looks department, Haku was most definitely a girl. The issue with Zabuza leads us into the next point.
What was Zabuza's take on all of this? *New evidence*
Zabuza may have called Haku a boy because that was what she was trained as. Haku was taught and raised as a male shinobi by Zabuza. In combination with the "no sexual tension" theory above, Zabuza probably felt better about himself thinking of Haku as a boy so he would not have to go easy on Haku during training. In other words, he treated her as someone who could take more than the average kunoichi (girl ninja). This allowed him to teach Haku everything he knew, as he said in one episode.
Another good theory is that some ninja may overestimate a kunoichi's abilities since they assume their chakra makes up for their lack of physical strength. Perhaps seeing what is thought to be a boy dressed like a girl makes some opponents take Haku as a joke, just as Gatou's bodyguards did. Then there is the theory that it is all to protect Haku's identity, which I mentioned earlier.
Now, in the end of the Land of Waves saga Zabuza dies next to Haku but not before revealing some feelings that some could consider feelings one would only have for someone they loved. Now of course love is not bound to mates or spouses, and Zabuza may have seen Haku as his own child, but the way the scene is portrayed in the anime strongly suggests that there was more between the two besides ownership and servitude. The manga went even further when Naruto revealed Haku's feelings to Zabuza, or at least what he gathered from his conversation with her.
https://img144.imageshack.us/img144/2751/haku3aw5.png
Judging by Haku's expressions and tear shedding in the strips before that, this love that Naruto spoke of was much deeper than that felt for a big brother or father. Haku believed in Zabuza and making his dream come true. That was the kind of dedication and admiration that you would only see from a wife figure or a consort.
Now for some new evidence. This next image tells us exactly how Zabuza felt about Haku.
https://img101.imageshack.us/img101/2053/hakuzcr3.png
This is the image of Haku that Zabuza recalled to memory shortly before his death! This proves that Zabuza did have some degree of love for Haku. Not only this, but it proves something else. It proves that before death, the image that he recalled to memory of Haku was not the one that could be seen as a boy. It was not the "boy" that he trained to be a killer. It was in fact the Haku that Naruto saw as a girl, and this image proves that Zabuza remembered Haku for who she truly was, a FEMALE!!!
Now for The Smoking Gun section.
The Smoking Senbon * New evidence*
By the way, senbon is what Haku used as weapons, which is why I got creative just now. Anyway, the evidence I found falls under number two of my above list. Haku showed sexual attraction to a certain MALE, which means the opposite sex of that would be female! Haku was a GIRL, not a boy!
https://img113.imageshack.us/img113/5204/hakusgyq7.png
This is from the manga, and this follows the strip of Zabuza being saved from the battle with Kakashi. Zabuza asked why Haku did not simply throw the needles into less vital areas of the body that would have produced the same temporary death state. Haku replied by saying that she did not want to scar his "beautiful body" ("flawless body" in the anime), and she did this while blushing. This is quite obviously the final nail in the Hakubuki theory's coffin.
I suppose you could still argue that Haku was a boy, but not without also arguing that "he", and Zabuza by default were gay. So I guess it comes down to the choice between thinking that a cartoon geared toward kids has gay characters or normal characters. Zabuza and Haku were better than that, as were the writers, and it would not make any sense if these two characters were gay because it would not fit the facts of the series at all. Believe it!
The rest of this paragraph is here to disprove that theory, since I am sorry to say that people actually do believe that they were gay, so if you do not hold the theory then feel free to skip ahead. Now then, even the gay Haku Boy theory is flawed. This is because it does not make sense in the context of the series. Assuming that Haku was a boy, obviously he dressed as a girl because he was "gay" in this theory, and this was done so that he could be Zabuza's life partner. However, while many in the Japanese culture did see this as a noble pursuit in days long past, there were also many who disapproved of it strongly. This is especially true of today's Japan.
Now, wouldn't it make more sense for Haku to pose as or "become" a woman with only he and Zabuza knowing the truth? It would, because even in cultures where homosexuality is accepted the two people choose their designations of being the male or female regardless of their gender. This is their futile attempt at normalcy in a lifestyle that is anything but normal. In other words, the roles are assumed because it does not seem as wrong to them, and certainly not to others who are none the wiser. Well, outright stating that you are a boy makes others wiser to the lifestyle, which would only welcome ridicule. Now, could Zabuza really afford to have such a reputation in the world when his main goal was to earn enough of other peoples' money to fund an uprising so that he could control an entire country? Does anyone really think that an entire country would follow the leadership of a gay man?
A more logical theory would have the boy Haku pose as and claim to be a girl in order to protect the relationship as well as Zabuza's character. So, all in all, the Hakubuki theory is not logical in any aspect.
Now for some new evidence. To continue the discussion of the gay boy Haku theory vs. the straight girl Haku theory, I submit the following points.
Fact: Zabuza told Haku at the beginning that he did not need consolation, encouragement or friendship, nor should Haku expect those from him. Haku understood this.
Fact: Zabuza trained Haku and taught her everything he knew.
Fact: Zabuza raised Haku from an age around 8 years to 15 years.
Now I ask you, what reason a boy Haku would have to dress as a female and also how such an idea could possibly come about? First of all, a boy raised by a cold blooded killer to be a shinobi and a weapon can only grow up to emulate the one that raised him, especially if that boy is set on making that person proud. Haku's desire to dress and act as a female could not have stemmed from anything that Zabuza taught Haku. Also, Zabuza would not want his weapon to act and dress like a female. He would want a boy to act like a man and dress like one because that would be the best mindset for a boy to be a true shinobi. As I mentioned before, a boy Haku would emulate Zabuza seeing as how Zabuza was the only male not to mention the most precious person in his life. So if Haku had been a boy, he would have looked and acted like a male, like Zabuza. Anything contrary to this would have been deterred by Zabuza.
There was also little possibility of Haku being looked at by Zabuza in a romantic way, since Zabuza stated that he did not need a friend to comfort or encourage him. Even if Zabuza did want romantic relations with someone, it would not have been with a boy that looked like a girl. It would have been a woman who looked like a woman. Plus, Zabuza would not have wanted to complicate the partnership he had with Haku by having a relationship with Haku. Simple as that. Thus, this negates the "gay" theory as well (not that the gay theory had any evidence to support it in the first place).
However, we know that Haku ended up dressing and acting like a female regardless of what Zabuza wanted. So why is this? Most logical answer, because Haku WAS a female! Believe it! She dressed and acted like a female because all she could do was do what came natural to her. She could not deny who she was or how she felt about Zabuza. Also, Zabuza knew that he could not do anything to CHANGE this since Haku was not a boy, and he could not realistically demand that Haku stop acting as the gender she was born as! He commented about Haku always being too soft and too kind, and why couldn't he change that about her? Because he did not understand the female mind. A boy would have been changed over time, but a girl would have been impossible to change for Zabuza.
Then there is also the fact that Haku was the one to go out and complete tasks for Zabuza, such as buy supplies and gather herbs for healing. Since she was a girl, she would not be suspected by any trackers in the area looking for Zabuza and his partner who was believed to be male. This was why she told Naruto that she was a male, because Naruto had guessed the truth about her being a girl!
Also, we know that Haku loved Zabuza. This love only makes sense for a female Haku, since she would not be able to deny her natural feelings, and because she had the possibility of being Zabuza's woman! Sure Zabuza said that he did not want that in the beginning, but what about at the end? Haku wanted to fulfill Zabuza's dream of ruling over the land of water and during that time a romantic relationship would have been impossible, but what would happen once that dream came true?
Logically, Zabuza would want a queen to rule beside him or at the very least he would want a MOTHER of his children! This is where Haku would serve him once again and have yet another purpose for the rest of her life! This would not be possible with a boy Haku, which means that the love Haku felt for Zabuza could only exist if Haku had been a female, since a girl Haku is the only one Zabuza could have a romantic relationship with. Since that love DID exist, it proves that Haku was female.
Now for EVEN MORE smoking gun evidence! This time under the first category of proof, which is gender identifying body parts. Before, I mentioned the issue of boy Haku theorists stating that Haku had no breasts and thus was not female based on that assumption and I provided counter points to that. Well this time I am also providing counter PROOF against the claim that she had no breasts!
One!
https://img153.imageshack.us/img153/4990/haku1ft9.png
And two!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcUxaxe_wUI&NR
(Go to 4:41 of that video. Also, if you want, check the same video for the image mentioned above that shows Zabuza recalling the female image of Haku to memory which is at about 8:30.)
The first image clearly shows that the upper part of Haku's female kimono sticks out in a rounded shape, and even the lighting and shading shows a roundness in the chest. This can only be a result of breasts pushing the kimono outward. Since the area directly under that part is flat against the stomach, it shows that this is not just a simple droop in the clothing.
The second image shows Haku after she was killed by the reckless and prideful Kakashi. As you can clearly see in this video image, Haku's sweater shows a definite curve to her chest. It drops down from the neck, then it goes back up to take the form of her breasts, and then it curves back down to be covered by the outside robe. Since a sweater takes the form of the person wearing it we can conclude that the form shown displays a female's chest.
Counter Evidence, and some supporting evidence from outside the series.
Yes, it does exist, but the counter evidence is weak and there aren't many points at all. Here is some counter evidence I found whilst researching the issue. Some is from other people and some is from me. There is also some supporting evidence that was not in the anime or manga.
"Haku's mother referred to Haku as a bad boy."
Completely false. This might be good supporting evidence if it existed, but Haku's mother called her a "wicked child" in the anime, not a boy. In the manga Haku's mother had no lines at all. In fact, the entire memory of Haku being caught manipulating water and then killing her father is not even in the manga!
"The writer of Naruto said that Haku and Zabuza were his first attempt at a gay couple."
I have heard this claimed but never supported by any evidence. I even searched the net for interviews with Kishimoto as well as interviews containing that specific text. Most of the ones I found did not even mention Haku or Zabuza, only one did, and it talked about why "those characters" may have been as popular as they were. Kishimoto made no reference to Haku's gender in that interview. On top of that, the claim itself does not prove that Haku and Zabuza were a gay couple. An attempt does not always end in success. Haku could still be girl posing as a guy and that would still be an attempt at creating a gay couple. Again, I must reiterate that this claim is not supported by an interview.
"Kishimoto said in a 2006 June interview with Shounen Jump Magazine that Haku was a boy."
This is very false. Here is a website documenting the June 2006 interview with Kishimoto.
https://www.naruto2.com/Information/I...iews_Main.aspx
This website has both interviews from Shonen Jump's May and June issues. Click on: Hatake Kakashi and Masashi Kishimoto. This "Haku is a boy" comment of Kishimoto's was supposedly in the June issue, yet this two part interview does not even mention Haku at all.
"The DATABOOK clearly states that Haku was a shounen or boy a few times."
This could be true, and then again it could be false. Haku's data has not been translated completely. There are Japanese text characters that form the word shounen, however, shounen does not always mean "boy". Other meanings are "few years" or "pure heart" which both apply to Haku. Also, the SAME databook shows the word for "female" or "woman" in Haku's data. Therefore, that reference to "woman" may in fact negate the references to her being male, or perhaps it states that she is really a female who pretends to be a boy. We won't know until all of Haku's data is translated to English.
Also, what is in the databook may not be the true facts. The databook may contain data that is derived from the events of the series, and the observations therein may be based on the opinions of the characters. For example, saying that Haku was a boy may just be based off of how the other characters in the series perceived her. Also, saying she looks like a girl may be based off of how Naruto perceived her. So the databook may not be strong evidence after all. Other character profiles will need to be studied to see if the databook really does contain solid facts and truths about the characters.
"Haku didn't look that much like a girl."
Maybe not to some, but that could be a case of a girl trying to look more masculine rather than a boy looking feminine. To me, Haku looks just like a girl, and even more so in the manga. The artists even went as far as to make the lips more colored (in the manga) and the eyelashes more accentuated in many instances. In fact, there are females in the series that look more like guys than Haku supposedly did. Shizune has short black hair and plain features, yet she is not mistaken for being a boy. Granted she has other features that define her gender, but from an art perspective she is drawn out to be one of the show's more butch females. Temari also qualifies in certain cases. She is obviously pretty in most cases, but in certain battles she can have a very mean look on her face. In those cases, if it weren't for the long hair she would look just like a boy.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/b/b5/Shizune001.jpg/200px-Shizune001.jpg
https://www.animegalleries.net/albums/Naruto/temari/naruto_temari0015.jpg
"Haku is described as a male in the official Naruto Trading Card Game."
This is some counter evidence that I found. This is actually good evidence, but it can be explained. I studied the Naruto TCG rulebook, and while each ninja card has the gender listed, this falls under the category of "Characteristics". Now since Haku was said to be male and believed to be male by others in the series, it is logical to simply list Haku as male in the card game, which features a battle style type of gameplay. Also, Haku's fighting style could be seen as a male's since it was so intense and brutal. So the cards may not be saying that Haku was male as much as it is saying that she fought like one and was seen as one in the series. This also goes for character descriptions in the video games and their manuals.
Also, like the American Naruto website on Cartoon Network, this card game is probably not canon. In the same way, the Japanese website for Naruto found here:
https://www.tv-tokyo.co.jp/anime/naruto/persons_f.html
may not be canon either. However, this website from TV Tokyo states on its Mist Village link that Haku was actually a beautiful girl (In Japanese, you will need a translator website to view the text in English). There is no mention whatsoever to Haku being a boy in her character profile on this website. Like I said before though, none of these sources may be canon.
"But she was called a boy by everyone!"
Everyone but those who matter. Even when those close to her call her a boy it was always in a time when she could have been and likely was putting on yet another ruse. I do not think that we should just assume that Haku was a boy just because Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke think she was one. Remember, Orochimaru killed a girl at the Chunin exams and assumed her identity. He even sounded like her and everything. The three also called the disguised Orochimaru a woman a few times. Does that make Orochimaru a woman just because they first thought he was one? No. So it shouldn't apply to Haku either.
"Haku said "boku" to refer to herself in the Japanese version."
This evidence is based on the fact that "boku" is used as a self reference by males in the Japanese language. While this is true, it is also true of women. While not traditional, it is common nowadays for females to refer to themselves using "boku".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_differences_in_spoken_Japanese#Words_for_.22I.22_or_.22me.22
Haku also uses some female speak in the Japanese anime. She uses "wa" to express admiration at Sasuke's ability to defeat the water clones that were at 1/10 strength. This isn't really a clue though, since Zabuza also uses "wa", though unlike Haku, Zabuza says it with a gruff tone. She also uses "ne" to end certain sentences. This is also female speak. Haku also used "atakushi" at least once in the series, and this is strictly female speak. She said this when commenting about Zabuza's "beautiful" body. Gee, I wonder why.
Haku did use other words that are male speak as well, such as "temae" for example, but when telling Naruto about her past, she used the word "atashi" to refer to herself as "I". So Haku also used her fair share of female speak. Believe it!
Now don't think that I am using this as proof that Haku was a girl. I am only using it as proof that her using words that are male speak or female speak in Japanese do not prove anything.
Conclusion
Haku was a girl because she looked, sounded, and acted like one. She loved Zabuza and he also returned those feelings to a certain extent. This is only possible if Haku were female. She had every reason to lie to the others about herself, and if she were a boy, she would not have admitted it to her enemy because that would have endangered her and Zabuza. She is also shown to be a girl in the anime because she had ALL of the standard identifying features of a female; pointed chin, feathered eyelashes, breasts, long hair, makeup, small build, etc. All of this is what made her female, and if Haku was not a female then I don't know what is as far as anime goes
