The Most Unlikely Legionnaire

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Percy Jackson.

AN/ READ ME! Just a prologue/startup I've been tinkering with for a while. So many stories are Camp Halfblood based. In this, Thalia and Jason's situations are reversed. Jason was the tree, Thalia went to Camp Jupiter as a child, and so on. Like I said, reversed. The pairing will be Naruto x Thalia. Also, while the motherly aspect is mainly Hera, I'm giving Juno a bit more motherly power than the Roman goddess usually had.

Start of Heroes of Olympus series…
Naruto (17 - October 10th)
Thalia (18 - December 22)

Prologue – In The Army Again

Then:

"No way!" she spat furiously. "I had you dead to rights!"

He chuckled merrily. "Oh, sparky, you were never even close."

"Don't! Call! Me-" Small sparks exploding around her eyes, "How many times-"

"So many times…sparky."

Grumbling, she stomped dramatically into their barracks. More than anything, she wanted to go and simply throw herself into the baths for a good, therapeutic soaking, but not as dirty as she was right now.

After a disastrous spar like that…a shower was well-earned. First, a quick rinse in the barrack shower, then she could go for that relaxing bath.

Crap but she ached all over. Sending a mildly scathing glance over her shoulder, she couldn't help but lose the attitude at the smile she caught in her periphery. In truth, victory wasn't guaranteed against him. She would know; she'd been trying the longest of any legionnaire. All the rest had given up after the first few trouncings, but she had kept it up for five plus years now.

There were no special abilities allowed in these spars, just skill. The blonde was by no means unstoppable…provided you didn't test him where he was strongest. He was best at close-quarters combat, hand-to-hand. The problem with that limitation was that Romans were the same.

His weapon-work was a bit weak. That was where Thalia tended to come out on top. But, while he was nowhere near the level of spear-work, or even that of a sword, that she was, he more than made up for it in his own ways. While he lacked technique…he was cunning, adaptive, incredibly fast, and, to top off that already nasty list…he was the most stubborn person any at the camp had ever seen.

Oh, and, lest she forget, his stamina and endurance were widely accepted as endless.

It had stopped being funny from day one, watching him come in from their daylong distance marching, an exercise deemed as torture to even their best, looking as fresh as a daisy while most everyone else seemed ready to cut their own legs off to end the torment.

Though it was always funny watching the occasional fool try to match him. New recruits, usually. They learned soon enough. The blonde was, as of yet, unbeatable in a battle of attrition.

A daunting opponent indeed.

But, unlike her fellow legionnaires, she had never given up, never cringed at the thought of losing on the path toward defeating him…one day.

Objectively, one could posit that it was this drive that had turned her into one of the camp's best Legionnaires.

He was more than just her rival though, he was…

Spinning on heel, she grabbed his arm and pulled him around her until he was pinned against the wall by her comparatively diminutive figure. Growling, she let go of his arm and both hands came up to fist his hair, pulling them together into a savage kiss.

Scrabbling, she started pulling off her tattered tank-top, breaking the eager liplock just long enough to get the damnable piece of clothing over her head. Left in her sports bra…proud C-cups still feeling so confined…she leaned into him, dominating the encounter.

The camp regarded them as soldiers.

Soldiers had needs.

So…

So long as they were of age, discreet, and safe, physical relationships were allowed. There were in fact many families in New Rome that had been part of the Roman Legion for generations. Legacies they were called.

Shivering eagerly at the hands that came to her still clothed backside, she inhaled sharply amidst the kissing as he lifted her up, hands cupping her buttocks. Snapping her legs around his waist, she started grinding herself against him. She felt as well as heard the growl ripping through his chest at the stimulation. It thrilled her to no end, the reactions she could draw out of him. Only to her did he show that primal side of himself.

"GAH!" a cry of shock echoed from the door of the barracks. "By the gods, I can never un-see that!"

"OUT!" A breath later and the interrupting demigod was fleeing at top speed. Not just from Thalia's cry of outrage, but also the dagger that'd shot across the room and embedded itself in the doorframe just missing his face.

"Sooooo. Where were we?" he pondered, intense, slit-pupiled eyes staring into her own sparking, electric blue.

"Clothes," she commanded impatiently. "Off."

He had noooooo problem taking her orders. That in mind, he knew that she knew he would only follow her orders so far, which was still a hell of a lot farther than anyone else's orders. She only had as much control over him as he allowed her.

She was riding a veritable whirlwind.

Now:

That'd been months ago. Nearly eight months, in fact. And Naruto had spent the entire time getting more and more pissed off.

One day she was there, the next she disappeared from the camp. Vanished, more like, from the face of the Earth.

He had impeached Juno, but to no avail. There was no reply from the goddess. Not just about Thalia, either. There had been no reply from the goddess whatsoever. And, as that ominous silence continued, with every attempt, he was growing increasingly worried. Not just for Thalia, but for his godly sponsor as well.

He was different than any other Legionnaire.

He had no godly parent in his bloodline, no matter how distant, but was exceedingly more powerful regardless.

That said, he was not alone.

He had proven his worth to Lupa, and then to the Legion. They took him in and accepted him as one of them. And then, two years ago, on his fifteenth birthday, his second fifteenth birthday ironically enough, he was claimed.

With no godly blood in him, he had never expected to forge a tangible connection with any of the gods. So it was that he had been gobsmacked and utterly baffled when Juno herself had appeared before him one night.

The great lady claimed she had seen nobility in him.

Flashback

"You are a curious mortal, Naruto Uzumaki," the queen slash goddess had mused, as if looking at something interesting in a petri dish. "My domain resonates strongly within you. Odd, for a man. You know the value of family, as well as duty to one's family, though you have none of your own." Okay, that last remark had hurt him a little bit. But he hadn't dared bite back at the cutting remark. He had no idea just how strong the gods here actually were, and, as Jiraiya had once told him… It's not wise to mouth off to someone who can and will kill you. "You possess many qualities that I can appreciate. As such, I would like to make you an offer. One you would have to be a fool to reject." He could still see the danger flashing across her eyes, silently warning him that this was not a woman to spurn lightly. "You have no godly parent, but I would offer you my patronage. You…would be my champion."

Seriously… Was she saying what he thought she was saying? "W-Why me?"

"I have already said as much," she reiterated, and though her voice reflected mild annoyance there was also a certain amount of understanding…and mild amusement. But she could spare him further words. "You are interesting…for a mortal. I see so little of the taint that mankind harbors within their hearts." The love and appreciation of life seemed to burn anything negative out of him.

"Are you saying you want to claim me…as-as your legacy?" The moment it passed over his lips, he wondered if his words could be viewed as an insult…given whom he was talking to.

Lips quirking, "I have no demigod children, you know that by now, just as you know why that is." Sighing, she analyzed him. "I would admit, it is a tempting idea, boy. Have you no thoughts towards the mother of your birth?"

He nodded. "She died the day I was born, but…by chance…we met just the once and for a time we spoke. I will never forget her," he murmured, a sadly sweet expression crossing his features. "But I have great respect for your domain, Lady Juno. I would be honored if you intended such a connection." When it came to covering his ass in a pinch, he had a tongue of the purest silver.

"Hmm…" Eyebrows rising, she contemplated the mortal. "Then, I think, the honor would be mine as well, child…my child. So long as you honor my domain and myself, so you shall be."

If she only knew how big an honor it was…to render Naruto Uzumaki speechless.

"An addendum to the bargain." At his sudden pensiveness, she smiled a thin, lipless smile. One of amusement but not full-on mirth. "I will never have demigod children, such is my nature. However, as my champion…as my legacy…those in your line will also be in my line. Again, so long as they remain true to my domain."

He tried to speak but only garbled consonants came out. Struck dumb, all he could do was kneel.

The goddess seemed thoroughly amused by this point at his cascading descent.

Flashback End

He had asked for one thing though…once he managed to collect himself enough to speak again.

Choice.

It was with utter sincerity and humility that he asked that any children he had should be allowed to choose their own path, be it in the Legion or not. Choice was very important to him, and he would not make that decision for his descendants.

He was wary of consigning his line to residing under the gods for eternity. He knew that while the gods could do good, they could also do ill. History was proof of that. And he couldn't just ignore that. There was believing in an ideal, and, simultaneously, thinking on how it could be turned, corrupted.

Initially, he'd taken her silence as preparation to turn his ass into a smear on the ground…but she had consented to his plea.

He chose to accept Juno's patronage. That was his choice, for himself. And should his future children wish it, they would accept the offer as well, or do something else with their lives. That choice would be theirs to make.

But enough reminiscing. For the non he had given up on receiving word from Juno. Either she was ignoring him…unlikely given her willingness to communicate in the past…or, more troubling, she was incapable of communicating with him. And, for the greater workings of the world, that worried him greatly.

Juno, unresponsive.

Thalia, mysteriously missing.

The gods, as a whole, blocking him out, no matter who he prayed to. Admittedly, the gods weren't the most vocal beings as he'd come to know them. They only seemed to make themselves known when they felt it was necessary.

But he'd earned a lot of credit during the war, taking down a titan by himself. And what did that credit get him? Just more silence.

Still, all this…

All, conspicuously enough…starting at the same time.

He'd beseeched the senate to continue the searches. But they felt that six months was more than enough.

As the Legion seer, Octavian preached dramatically over his many days spent trying and failing to find their lost praetor, that his inability to find Thalia meant she was likely dead and beyond saving. It'd taken the entire barracks to talk him down from killing the miserable worm. And by talk… The barracks had actually physically pulled him off of the seer before he could do more than blacken his eye.

Naruto earned a month's punishment for that outburst.

Worth it.

The only thing that kept him from being demoted was his status as Juno's chosen.

And then things changed.

A new recruit…conspicuously brought into the camp by Lady Juno, the previously missing goddess disguised as an old hippie woman.

He couldn't get to her, couldn't get close. Al he got was a knowing look from her across the distance before she disappeared from the face of the Earth once more.

This was all becoming wearying.

Thus, all his worries heaped on his shoulders and pushed him…just a day later…to try something drastic.

This was a terrible idea.

Screw that! This was way, way worse than that.

Just ask anyone not on a death-wish bender. Hell, even someone looking for a quick exit from life would think otherwise before taking this route.

Kneeling before the shrine, head bowed…he tempted the Fates.

"Lady Minerva, Goddess of the Arts…I am in need of your council." He didn't expect an answer. Not yet. That would come soon enough, he was certain. With what he knew, and, more importantly, was about to divulge that he knew, there was no denying an answer in one form or another. Either in words…or something more lethal. "I know about the other camp."

Six words.

That was all it took to summon the goddess.

Standing before him was a woman slightly shorter than himself. Five-eight, by his guess.

Not that he was any less daunted by the enormity of his potentially suicidal move.

Her steely gray-eyed gaze spoke of utmost seriousness in the moment, yet her attire spoke of something else. Casual jeans over hiking shoes. A flannel shirt, the sleeves rolled up. A walking stick tucked between crossed arms. Ebon hair pinned back away from her face to fall down her shoulders. And her face, though stony in seriousness, was beautiful, as all goddesses tended to be.

"This is an unexpected meeting, if ever there was one, mortal."

"I keep many secrets, Lady Minerva," he began. "Just as I have kept silent the knowledge retained from meeting the Greeks."

She sent him that same weighing glance, and he knew that he was still defending his life in her eyes. "Yet you now break that silence."

"I swear to you, Lady Minerva…and to Lady Juno, herself, that I do not wish conflict between the two sides. I simply ask guidance. You are the goddess of wisdom to the Romans and the Greeks. I need to speak with someone who is able to see both sides the way you can," taking care not to say Bellona's name aloud. He had all the godly attention he could handle at the moment.

So long as he didn't purely invoke Athena's aspect…he should be fine. Rumor said that she had a hard on for killing Romans that bordered on insanity. Though, to be fair, Minerva had a bit of a murder-streak in her too.

Eggshells.

Walking on eggshells.

"The best guidance I can give is to wipe the knowledge from your mind." Cocking a brow at him inquisitively, "And how is it you remember as you do?"

"My situation," he answered back honestly. "A side-effect of what made me as I am left my mind with significant protection."

Frowning, the goddess hummed in thought. "I see."

"Lady Minerva… Please, I know what Percy Jackson is." He had never lost Minerva's attention. The reason she had not acted was knowing the danger in taking actions without understanding situations fully. Acting in ignorance was a fool's method, not hers. "I come to you, now, to ask if his appearance, and my, er, that is, if Thalia's disappearance is connected." His eyes shone in unspoken suspicion. "I am confident on my own that they are. And, that if he has made it here, then Thalia… I just wish to ask…why."

The goddess looked bemused…and amused…by the question.

"I've figured out enough that you, the gods, have kept us, the Romans and the Greeks, separate for our own safety. So, again, why? Why orchestrate this? It is with all my heart that I hope it is in the vein of peace."

After a lengthy silence as he shakily revealed what he had to her, the goddess finally responded. Crossing her arms, "It is a shame Juno scooped you up as she did," the goddess mused. "Had I known you were so cunning, I would have made a move myself." Sighing, "I reveal little by telling you that our intents align with your hopes, young man. The girl is indeed with them."

The teen sagged, relief washing over him like an ocean wave.

"Whether she survives the ordeal laid upon her though…"

Relief? What relief? His muscles tensed so much as to twinge painfully, taut as bow string.

"The question of the moment… What should I do with you, Naruto Uzumaki? The knowledge you have gleaned was kept hidden for good reason. If it cannot be removed, killing you would be a simple task."

"I came here expecting as much," the teen admitted.

"…Do you hate the Greeks?" she asked abruptly, probingly.

Caught flatfooted by the question, "Well, no. I don't hate anyone, really. I just- I don't see why I should hate them. I don't know them, and they don't know me. So why should there be hate?"

"History can be a powerful motivator."

"History that I have no part of," he countered. "The Legion took me in. Lady Juno offered her support. But…I can't hate someone…someone I don't even really know…just because someone tells me I should. As a goddess of wisdom, you preach that we should learn from our pasts," he stated baldly. "But…we can't let it define us. How would we grow?" Iruka would've had a coronary if he'd heard the blonde say something so insightful.

That actually got a small smile from the goddess.

Common sense…was not as common as you'd think. And, as blunt as he was, the young man seemed to be blessed with it.

"Then…I suppose I can let you keep your mind intact," she sniffed dismissively. "Though I would recommend you not broadcast this knowledge. My brethren aren't as likely to hear you out as I have been." The blonde nodded enthusiastically.

"I, um, actually expected you to smite me on the spot."

Brow quirking, "Expecting death, and yet you still called me. Why? Surely, you couldn't have expected this conversation to have ended so well."

"Desperation," he countered freely. "Someone I care for is missing, and the recent silence from the gods has left me worried. If protecting the people I care for means wagering my life, then it's a cheap cost to pay."

Minerva weighed his words…and held in the appreciative smile. Few mortals acted without even the smallest sense of self-preservation. Either he truly undervalued the worth of his own life…or the heights to which he valued others was almost unheard of. It was…endearing…to see such nobility in this modern age of whims.

"Go well, mortal," she stated simply, "And I expect to read that book of yours when you are finished."

He bug-eyed. "How did-" but, before he could even finish his question, she promptly vanished.