Fall Blossoms
The valley looked like as if giant hand had spoonedthe earth and sifted the rock and earth randomly around the hole. Jagged rocks where the occasional speck of green would catch one's eye surrounded the level horizon to the west. From there, the great orb in the sky cast red mist over the world, shadows against the crimson background with its silhouette stretching, growing slowly towards the east.
One man stood against the wind, isolated from the rest of his comrades by fifty meters of nothingness and a mind prone to visions. The gentle breeze caressed his aged features and lifted his unkempt,blonde tresses. A hoarse cough escaped his lips, muffled by the scarred, sun-tanned arm pressed against his open mouth. A smudge of red was wiped on an open piece of fabric left on his hakama, the traditional Japanese bottoms made of heavy, woven hemp.
Brows furrowed in deep thought, the 20-something-year-old foreigner turned to face his loyal troops with a grin of determination and courage. "We can do this," his words, although barely audible against the wave of wind, stung each and every heart that heard them with hope. A few low nods and 'thumbs up' signs were given in return by the worn shinobi, whose raven hair began falling from their dirty top knots. Their bodies were worn down by the long trek through the unbearable valleys underneath the summer sun.
"They're coming."
Neither the seemingly fatal injuries nor the circle of armed opponents had had began to swarm around him made the determined fighter in the least bit doubt himself. What began as scattered dots on the horizon grew to a sea of black accompanied with their booming voices that shook the earth underneath their trembling feet. His lips quivered, his knees threatened to buckle and his spine liquefied, but his dragon-scale coveredhands never loosened its grip on the giantshuriken nor did his facial features portray even a tinge of fear. The man who stood alone against a wall of armed, vicious and seemingly cannibalistic beasts would die gloriously, painfully and take as many of his enemies down with him as he could.
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A dozen giant, light marble columns looked as if they protruded from the heavens and pierced through the thick ceiling, extending the limits of paradise to fit a building. The polished floor created a perfect reflection of the scenic sky painted on the dome above. Anyone that walked through the entrance would half expect ripples to appear upon their contact. A lengthy low table that stretched the width of the room was the most eye-catching piece of furniture in the traditionally decorated area. Welcoming, velvet cushions were placed evenly around the perimeter of the dinner table, each with an elite member sitting legs behind their knees on it. They were listening intently to an animated middle-aged, oriental man clad in a warrior's armour.
"The city walls will be breached within a fortnight if we just await our fate!" The passionatevillage kazeslammed his fist down on the long discussion table causing the food on the ornate, gold plates and bowls to bounce on their maple settings. "We must stop them at once; send in all our forces in an all-out battle at all costs to protect the capital."
"It would be sending all those young men to their death. Even if, by some miracle, we are able to defeat them, it would be impossible to regenerate our forces as fast as they can." The voice that came from the throne caught all present at the hall off-guard. It was seldom that theelderly hokagespoke, and even less common that they were longer than a mere 'yes' or 'no'.
"But your highness, I see no other way to attack this invasion."
"United they stand, divided … they shall fall," were the wise words spoken by their leader.
"So you're proposing we attack in waves, increase the chances of success?" A pause followed as the members at court properly digested the words, anticipating and dreading the request to come.
"Any volunteers to take a team tothe first wave?" Contained chuckles erupted from all corners of the large hall as the army leaders bemused themselves with the sheer bluntness thekaze from before asked for volunteers. They all knew that the first line and theirteam leaderwere sending themselves into certain death against a swarm of powerful enemy ninjas.
"I will."Naruto Uzumakiraised his hand, his expression was unreadable and his voice unwavering.
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"This is for you, Sakura-chan."Naruto muttered to himself and prepared mentally for the inevitable death to come. In his mind, flashes of battle scenes not only foretold his own fate but also of the enemy's movements. 'A battle from the west, to symbolize the conclusion of this wasted life,' he concluded, his lips curving upward in a twisted grin.
"I know you've always wanted my life to be ended by the blade of a sword, and how your wish shall come true." His voice wasn't bitter nor did it contain eve a hint of contempt. As he laid his eyes on the men that followed in to the hopeless cause, a pang of guilt struck him and his eyes softened to a point where he toyed with the idea of turning back. The present brought him back, "Hopeless or not, an order given is an order followed." The distance of his own voice did not awake him because Honoha's Hokage'swords sounded right to him; it gave him speck of substance to keep him on the path of righteousness.
Squinting his eyes against the red sun,Naruto knew that the second wave of the attack would come before his surviving comrades would be able to recollect themselves. The new visions sent chills down his spine. Clashes of metal already rang between his ears, and the distinct metallic scent of human blood permeated his nostrils and threatened to drown him in a massacre he knew was to come. Then he remembered who he was fighting for.
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"I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" screamed a puffy-eyed, red-cheeked girl as herpinkish hair floated in the wind. Her hands were clenched into tight fists, several creases and scratches could be found all over her azure, curve-hugging dress. No one would have been able to predict such an sudden outburst from a girl that was usually collected, poised albeit estatic sometimes.
Behind her towered a ring of cherry blossom trees, the autumn wind carrying the pink flower petals from the branches softly to the ground. A few swiveled and landed on her now untamed hair and shoulders as she sniffed back her tears. "Nowhere is it written that you have to wait two years before you tell someone your feelings. Why did you wait until now to tell me this, fox, when it's too late? I waited an eternity to hear those words from you, did you know that?After, Sasuke-kun,every man that ever resembled you, I looked twice at; did you know that? When night fell and the wind from out of my windows whispered sweet nothings in my ear, I'd always hope that one day that voice would become yours, did you know that?"
"No …" was his solemn reply, as if the switch that connected his inner self to his vocal chords was shut off. Dry and emotionless, were they like a desert in comparison to her tear-drenched words. His voice was barely above a whisper, almost inaudible to those who didn't read his lips, but yet the sound knifed the prolonged silence that followed Sakura's words. "I'm sorry." The common phrase, although spoken with true sincerity, lacked the depth and emphasisthe shinobihoped to convey. "I know I should've told you sooner. But there were other things happening. I know that this doesn't do much-"
"That's all you know, to apologize and make excuses when an apologies and excuses are insufficient!" Her sobs had quieted down and instead, her temper flared as she took large strides towards the retreating young man. "After six years of silence, you think an apology is going to make everything alright again?"
"No, but …" the words were constricted, unwilling to come out as if it knew the effect would be negative before it was even spoken.
"Damn right you are! God, why do you have to be so … unresponsive?" Her criticism seemed never-ending, pushing him into deeper depths of regret and guilt. Every time she accused him of an undone crime, he pleads guilty. Every word he said, every action he did would only fuel her 'hate' for him. Even when he fastened his arms around her frame and cooed in her ear, she hit and halfheartedly pushed him away from her. The truth, unspoken as it may be, was heard more clearly than any other expression would by her actions.Naruto knew he was wanted then, no amount of her cursing would drive him away.
"We're done! Go! Go get yourself killed by the edge of a sword whose wielder will not remember your name! Wear your crest and leave me to defend your honour, or whatever it is you'd die for these days!"
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No matter how prepared he thought he was, there was no use controlling the anxiety. Droplets of perspiration rolled down his scruffy chin to the swirling red substance underneath his feet. Loose pebbles drummed as the earth shook from hundreds of horses' gallop. A mantra from nowhere popped into his head and screamed at the man to not give into death until it became obviously inevitable. 'I have to survive, I have to survive, and I have to survive!'
As the deafening noises neared them,the jouninunleashed a loud command of charge, remotely resembling a battle cry of his own to the world from where he stood. It not only boosted his confidence but also those of his comrades. But no sooner had the words escaped his lips, did the war-savvy man turn into an amateur on the battlefield for the first time again.
Impulse took over from then on, as his first target charged at him, randomly swinging about its sort in a primitive manner,Naruto instinctively stepped out of the dull, rustic blade's path with ease while parrying another attack from his other side with the same fluid motion. Seeing as how both his opponents' sides were open for attack, he thrust hisoversized shurikenthrough vulnerable man's body, pulled it out and repeated the motion again to another man. Whenthe largeweapon didn't fulfill his speed requirement, he threw the prided weapon aside and used smallkunais to finish the jobs. Though some men took more than one strike to finish, most were no match for his superior swordsmanship and an almost unlimited reserve of chakra. Over and over again, he exterminated those around him until his motions were just one big blur. With each man he killed, he only became more and more detached from reality, performing the cruel task like a programmed robot.
Molding the powersupply into his legs, he bounced off of several enemies after knocking the wind out of them. With precision, he threw the kunai at further, charging opponents while reserving the almighty Rasengan for closer fights. A circle of destruction surrounded the young ninja for many hours as he continued his slaying. The Kyuubi usually dormant inside his navel was fully awakened and lustfully ran its claws,from Naruto's motions, through the deliciously meaty flesh of those dying by his hands. But eventually, all good things must come to an end.
After taking numerous lives, it would only be right that the killer too would eventually be killed as well. When an arrow paralyzed him with a strike narrowly missing his spinal chord on the back of his neck,Naruto knew it was the end of him. He paused and looked at his surroundings, taking it all in for the first time. The corpses that lay at his feet emitted the foul scent of death, a smell he knows so well. Looking down at the metallic object protruding from his neck, he was surprised to find himself completely calm. He turned his head to the nearest comrade who was finishing off the last of the men alive and laughingly said "Write me a good eulogy." With a longing smile, the warrior looked up at the dawn sky, bathed in his own blood. 'I know it wasn't quite what you wanted, Sakura.' Those were his last thoughts before he departed.