AN: Managed to scrounge up this chapter before exams.
Updated: 11/16/18
XXXX
The moon shone a glaring red. Its rays of light reaching down from the heavens like an ethereal deity casting judgment on its inhabitants. Exposing the ruined battleground beneath it.
It was as silent as the grave, the air reeked of rot, bodies littered the field — blood covered the surface in an endless sea of red.
Dead blue eyes surveyed the field, scanning for any signs of movement.
…
…
…
His grip faltered — the sword in his hand dropped to the ground with a dull clang. His body ached, sharp jolts of lightning occasionally running through his broken elbow, his vision was blurry, his lungs burned.
A breath escaped his lips, "We...won."
"Let's go home, senpai..." A voice. Female. Echoed from behind, shattering the fragile spell of silence blanketing the field.
Home, the word sounded foreign to him. A place where you were accepted — wanted. He had no home. Weapons like him didn't get that luxury.
He turned to her, giving her a sharp look, "You disobeyed my orders."
Pale pink lips twitched upwards, curving up into a small smile - exhausted but beautiful lavender orbs looking at him with warmth, "Hai."
"I told you to leave me…"
His fists clenched. Lips curling down to a frown. He took a few steps toward her, eyes narrowed - the weight of his gaze bearing down on her.
"I know," she replied, her gaze falling to the ground.
"You could've compromised the mission,"
"I know..."
"There was no need to endanger your life any further,"
"I know..."
He stopped - A hair's breadth away from her. His warm breath hitting against her skin.
"I should report you for insubordination."
"I know," she paused, giving thought to her next words, "but... I can't… I can't leave you alone."
A spark ignited inside of him. An intense heat burning within his chest. Something tugged at him, he had a sudden urge to yell at her. He wanted to - but he didn't.
Brows furrowing together, he asked, "Why?"
Her eyes raised, lavender orbs locking with his. She raised an arm. Her middle and index finger extended toward him.
…
Soft fingers pressed against his forehead, the pale digits sending warmth, encompassing his cold frame.
"Baka," she gave a quiet chuckle. Shaking her head at him, her beautiful blue locks swaying about, she continued, "we're comrades, senpai."
"...Comrades." he tested. This was a first. He had never been addressed as such.
She nodded at him and continued "...and comrades never abandon each other... no matter what..." Her pale hands clutched at her chest, right above her heart. "So, please... learn to lean on me, atleast a little."
XXXX
Naruto released a breath of air as he felt the sweet numbing effects of the alcohol take hold of his senses.
It'd been over a week since he turned over the bounty for Am-mut. Brittany gave him a light scolding for taking the quest without a group and he was prohibited from hunting future bounties alone, with the penalty of losing the reward if he chooses to disobey.
It was worth it at least, he was able to repair his tanto with the gold from the quest, and he found out that the fox could still supply him with chakra… when it wanted to anyway.
"Hey look, that's him right?"
"What? You mean the guy who soloed that bounty?"
"Shh! Not so loud. I heard-"
Ignoring the whispers of the patrons in the tavern, he propped his hands on the countertop, resting his brows on his knuckles.
His recent exploit made him the talk of the town apparently. Some called him a fluke while some called him a prodigy in leagues with the likes of 'Soma of the Daybreakers', whoever that was.
Others approached him asking him how he was able to infiltrate a heavily fortified city, assassinate one of its key figures and come out with his life intact. He gave them all the same cryptic reply of "I got lucky."
It was true after all, if not for the Kyuubi's timely intervention he would've…
He frowned, looking at the faint scar that marred the junction of his elbow all the way up to the edge of his wrist. Am-mut's grip had almost completely crushed his arm. Of course the fox's chakra healed it but this time a scar remained.
A reminder of what would've surely been his demise.
Nothing but luck.
"Naru-chii!"
A loud cheerful call broke his thoughts. The owner of the voice was a honey-eyed man with a slicked-back messy brown hair running past his shoulders. He had a slight playboy charm accentuating his looks.
Naruto gave a small nod of greeting as the man took the empty seat right next to his. "Kikkawa-san."
"Maa, maaa, there you go again, being so uptight as always. Just relax, man. Enjoy the night ~!" Kikkawa sang lightly, as he gave a light pat on Naruto's shoulder.
Kikkawa was one of the few who'd approached him and inquired about his bounty kill. After getting to know Naruto, Kikkawa had taken a bit of a shine to him, hanging out with him on Sherry's tavern on free days.
Though Kikkawa could be a bit… noisy, he didn't particularly dislike him.
Apparently, Kikkawa was part of the batch of volunteer soldiers that came after his. Kikkawa had the displeasure of being one of the 'odd ones' that got left out and didn't find a group to work with. It worked to his fortune though as it led to him being more sociable and amicable toward every other adventurer. He'd wager a bet that Kikkawa knew almost every adventurer in Alterna.
And he would capitalize on that.
"Kikkawa-san, I need a favor."
"Oh?" his eyes opened a bit in surprise, his face turned to Naruto, amusement laced in his voice, "What kind of favor?"
Naruto fished out a folded parchment in his pocket and unfurled it on the countertop.
Troll Camp Extermination!
A group of trolls have made settlement near the bridge by the western river. Their numbers are estimated to be around the twenties range. Witnesses' state that they have sighted a warlock among the group of trolls. Proceed with caution!
Reward for confirmed kill: 3 gold pieces and 50 silvers.
For more information contact, Bri of the Red Moon Army.
Warning! This is a party quest, do not venture alone.
…
"I am at an impasse as I lack... the necessary… decorum to find myself a suitable party member, though I am in need of one."
"Huh?" Kikkawa's eyes opened in surprise, glancing down at the parchment, and back to him again, "Only one? ...You sure about that?"
Nodding his head in affirmation, Naruto asked, "Can I ask for your assistance on this matter?"
Blinking away his shock, Kikkawa clutched at his chin and replied, "Hmm… I'm not sure... do you have any preferences?"
He didn't have to think, "I don't need them to fight. If possible, I'd prefer someone who can heal."
Kikkawa pursed his lips in thought, then a few seconds later snapped his hand as a proverbial light bulb alighted his thoughts, "Hmm… Let me — Ah! I think I know someone who miiight be willing to join. Yeah, I think she'll be fine with it...then again… she's a bit of a spitfire. Meh! I'm sure you'll get along! ...I think at least." he chuckled awkwardly.
Giving him a light nod of thanks, Naruto said, "That's fine. Thank you Kikkawa-san."
"Uh-uh-uh," Kikkawa shook his head, waving a finger in front of him. He curled his hand in a cupping motion.
Naruto rolled his eyes, fishing some silver coins in his pocket and dumping it on his greedy friend's palms.
Kikkawa gave him a megawatt smile, counting his coins, "Okay! Just meet me at the market square tomorrow at noon."
Naruto nodded his head in thanks taking a sip of his tankard of mead.
The rest of the night simply went off without a hitch.
XXXX
"...but like I said Merri-chii, I know for sure Naru-chii will blow your expectations!" Kikkawa said, nodding to himself with his arms crossed over his chest.
Merry rolled her eyes at the annoying man, her cheeks curled down into an angry scowl. For the past ten minutes, Kikkawa had been trying -and failing- embellish this "Naru-chii". Telling her how he was the "ultimate" party member and how he'd definitely "wow" her out of her icy shell.
She highly doubted it, her opinions about the man was already set low. Not only was he late for the meetup but his request seemed incredibly stupid to her.
Apparently, he planned to attack a troll camp all by himself. She wondered whether the guy's an idiot or is in suicide watch — if it wasn't for Kikkawa's compelling words about how "Naru-chii" would be the one doing all the fighting and that all she had to do was wait for him and heal him, then she wouldn't have come.
The sound of a chair screeching brought her back to reality as Kikkawa abruptly stood up and waved his arms in the air like a lunatic.
"Naru-chii! Over here!" he beckoned.
It was about time. The walking chatterbox had been grating her nerves for the past few minutes and she was nearing her last legs. Turning around, she was just about to give the newcomer a taste of her ice-cold glare, only to freeze, eyes wide open. It took her brain a second to process exactly who it was standing before her.
His eyes were the same, retaining the same dull shade that sent shivers down her spine whenever she looked at it. The tattered rags he wore was gone, replaced by a brown cloak that enshrouded his form. He wore an ebony dyed leather armor underneath it with a sheathed tanto attached to his back.
She stood still, stiff as a rock, her heartbeat reverberating throughout her system. She swallowed a bit, her thoughts finally catching up to her. "Blonde hair, blue eyes. Naru-chii... Naru… Naru-to? N-no...it's 'him'."
Naruto regarded her with a look of indifference.
How ironic, to think out of everyone Kikkawa would choose Hinata's look alike. Though there was some different… her eyes.
'Oh. I see.'
Gone were the naive and gentle blues, replaced by chips of cold ice. Her innocence gone, shattered by the trials of life.
Though he already knew, he asked Kikkawa just as a formality, "I assume this is her?"
Kikkawa shook his head in disapproval, throwing an arm around his shoulder, "Naru-chii, Naru-chii," he chastised while waving his index finger. "That's not how you treat beautiful ladies, yah know? Be polite to Merri-chii will yah?"
Naruto blinked and turned toward Merry, he gave her a subtle bow in apology, "Apologies."
The monotone way he said it made so that you couldn't tell if he was sincere or not, the blank look on his face didn't help with it either.
Realizing she was being addressed to and that she'd been staring at him with obvious fear in her eyes, Merry bit her cheek, schooling her face back to its usual cold look.
What was there to fear? Death?
There's nothing else left for her to lose. The world had already taken so much from her; her friends, all three of them. She even came close to death herself. There was nothing left to fear. She's not afraid to die, not anymore. She wouldn't fear him. She wasn't afraid.
She couldn't tell what kind of apology that was but it left her feeling irritated more than anything.
Raising her head, high enough that she was looking down at him, she gave him a condescending look, and spoke with a prickly tone, "It's fine, I don't really care what you do as long as I get my share."
Naruto stared at her couple seconds unblinking and nodded his head, replying with a curt, "Understood"
"Where are we heading?" she asked.
"The west river," Naruto paused, "Merchants say that most assaults happen in the path near that area."
Merry gave him a nod and picked up her pack. She slung it over her shoulder, fastening the straps as she did so.
"Merry-san," she heard him call out. Their eyes met, she felt the weight of his stare bearing down on her, despite her earlier conviction, she felt her joints stiffen at that gaze.
"Follow my orders for the duration of this quest, or I cannot guarantee your life."
Letting out a dismissive snort to mask her feeling, she spoke, "W-whatever, get going. I'll follow you."
Naruto paused for a moment, keeping his eyes locked on her.
Those eyes... There was absolutely something wrong with those eyes. It left goosebumps on the back of her neck. She could feel him reading her, exploring every hidden inch of her soul. It unnerved her. Relief hit her when he finally broke his gaze and gave her a nod, wordlessly turning toward the direction of the city gate.
Merry let out the breath she was holding, taking another hesitating glance at the blonde's back. After, righting herself, she followed soon after.
All the while, Kikkawa was sweating, thinking to himself that maybe… just maybe this wasn't a good idea.
XXXX
It was a simple extermination quest. A troll settlement had been established a tad too close to Alterna's trade routes. They were to eliminate all settlers and burn the encampment to discourage future would be migrators from settling in.
The trip toward their destination was interesting enough for her.
Even if the man was creepy, suspicious and made her hair stand on end, she wouldn't deny that he intrigued her.
At certain times he'd stop and pluck something on the ground. He'd pause and observe it for a moment then continue on.
It was called...track, an ability that enabled hunters to look for signs of their target.
It aroused her curiosity, he was using a skill exclusive only to hunters, yet he's a thief. It didn't make sense. How could h—
Her heart skipped a beat, suddenly finding his hand clamped at her mouth. He tugged, making her lose her balance. She felt the whipping of the winds on her skin, a chill running through as she plummeted down, her back hitting his chest.
Her breathing quickened, heart pulsing rapidly. Her gut twisted itself together into a knot, dread worming its way up. No-no-no-no! She knew it! This whole thing was a trap, he'd had his eyes on her ever since they got here and now he has her, all alone.
'I'm not going to die like this!'
Her eyes blazed with anger, survival instincts kicking in, squashing the fear she felt inside. If she was going to die, she was going down fighting. Opening her mouth she chomped at his hand, the taste of iron hitting her senses as blood seeped through the wound.
But not even a grunt escaped him.
Merry bit even harder, her adrenaline flow—
A guttural groan that sounded like a cross between a lion and a horse, echoed throughout the clearing, a short distance away from the crevice they were leaning against.
At this she stopped struggling, and he loosened his hold on her, unclasping his hand from her lips. Slowly, ever so slowly, she turned, looking up at him from behind, meeting his confused gaze.
'Oh…'
Realizing her blunder, she winced and was about to utter a small apology only for his hand to clasp her lips again. He lifted a single finger, the universal gesture of silence.
She felt like dying in a ditch from the embarrassment, though she didn't show it. Instead, she gave him a nod, clearly telling him she understood.
He gave her a nod back in reply, uncovering her mouth. Her eyes followed him, trailing after his wounded hand, as he planted his back to the cave fissure. Then, with his good hand, he grabbed hold of his tanto and...
"Gurrkh!"
A flash, Merry only saw a flash. Then something hit the floor, rolling all the way up to her foot. Taking a closer look, she flinched as her eyes locked at the dismembered troll head, mouth open in a hollow scream, blood spurting out of the stump.
Killing. This world was all about killing. You had to kill to survive, those who couldn't, well, they didn't live very long. The first time her group took a life, a goblin who had strayed too far from Damuro - she felt sick to her stomach. She took a life. Something that could feel, love, hope...dream, — she took all those things away.
At first, Merry didn't think she'd be able live this way, but eventually, she grew numb to it. In the end, survival mattered the most. The strong lived, the weak died.
She almost jumped when she felt Naruto's breath whisp past her ear in a whisper, "Merry-san, stay here."
"Wait!"
She moved to stop him, she wanted to at the very least heal his wound and buff him, but her voice came out too late, he was already a short distance away from whisper range. She sucked on her teeth, resisting the urge to facepalm.
'He's a mess. What kind of idiot goes into a fight unbuffed?'
It was Party Basics 101. Let your priest buff you before engaging in combat. There was absolutely no reason to head into fights unbuffed given the opportunity. Most priests would've thrown a fit for what he'd done.
Merry, of course, was too dignified for that and settled with clenching her teeth, letting her anger fizzle down into small embers.
She poked her head out, looking for signs of her companion. The scene before her made her breath hitch in her throat.
Seven bodies laid still on the ground, blood pooling beneath them. Each cut was precise, hitting a single vital point. Their weapons were sheathed, all of them. These trolls… they weren't even given a chance to draw their weapons.
Naruto had dispatched the patrol guards outside the encampment, but where could h—
She caught sight of a silhouette traversing on the side of one of the wooden walls. Tied around his waist was a rope connected to a knife stuck on the edge of the wall.
With a final pull, he made it to the top of the wall. Immediately after, he unsheathed his blade and jumped off the edge toward the inside of the camp.
'...He's insane!'
A chill ran down her spine as ferocious shouts emerged from the encampment. She didn't know whether to help or not. Though some may call her cold, mean and harsh, she wasn't heartless. She wouldn't let just anyone die but what hope does she have against a whole village of trolls? Judging from the noise, there must be at least more than twenty of them in there. At this point...
She felt a weight of dread drop in her gut. "He's dead..."
The sound of blade hitting flesh reverberated throughout the area, one after another, the cries of his victims accompanied the sound with each slash.
Eventually the angry yells were reduced to small whimpers of fear...then it stopped and everything went quiet.
'What?'
Merry stood frozen in place, eyes wide, unable to comprehend what just happened.
…
…
...
Smoke came out of the fort and the scent of burnt wood filled her nostrils. The leaves behind her rustled, and a blood-spattered Naruto appeared.
Her eyes darted over him looking for something, ready to heal his wounds...
'D-did he really just...' her throat dried up, realizing that the only wound she had was the one she unintentionally inflicted, "...H-how…" she gawked, the words escaping her, eyes wide in disbelief. 'N-no wounds… just what kind of monster is he?'
Raising an eyebrow, Naruto made a 'move-on' motion with his head, "Let's go, we'll split the bounty in Alterna."
He strode onwards, bloody sack in hand, going on as if nothing had happened. As if he didn't just single-handedly exterminated an entire colony of creatures.
Glancing back at the destruction left behind, Merry beheld the scene. Smoke covered the camp, she couldn't tell how many were dead but judging from the screams she heard, there was a handful. Her nose wrinkled in disgust as the smell of smoke, blood, feces and urine mixed in the air.
'Five minutes...It took him only a little over five minutes to kill all of them.'
Her shoulders shuddered a little as she followed after him.
XXXX
After splitting up the bounty, Merry left him alone with nary a word, nor a goodbye. He didn't mind, he preferred it that way. He had always been a loner by nature. Most ROOT agents functioned well alone and he was no exception. Hinata had been the only one who could keep up with him as far as he could recall.
He's currently on his way to the tavern to waste the day away. It had been a routine for him lately. Go out, get drunk, sleep, repeat. There was reason for it of course. He'd been hearing her voice lately, whispering to him, condemning him, reminding him of his past deeds — he'd been ignoring it as best as he could, but it wasn't easy. The bags on the rim of his eyes is proof of that.
There was something different today though cause, for some reason, she remained quiet. This wasn't normal. He was able to fight unhindered today, there was no visions, nor whispers. He didn't know why but he put it on the back burner for now. Right now, all he wanted to do was rest.
He pushed the doors open and propped himself on his usual seat. He wanted to splurge a bit today — he did make a gold coin and a couple silvers today.
Ordering a bowl of wolf meat stew and a mug of mead. He made himself comfortable. Taking a whiff, the homey and spicey scent in the air sent a pleasant tingle in his brain. Sherry's tavern had become a place of solace for him, a place where he could eat in peace, relax and calm himself.
He didn't have to wait for long till his order came. He couldn't help the light rumble that escaped his gullet. The recent day's activity had left him famished. Grabbing his utensils, his eyes alighted in delight as he dug into the bowl of stew, the spices inside mingled together in harmony. The meat was succulent, soft, tender. It felt like it was melting in his mouth.
He couldn't help but notice how he'd spoiled himself lately. He hadn't experienced this kind of luxury before. The only food he'd eaten was the bland rations provided in ROOT. So, he felt a little bit guilty of how much money he'd spent on food lately.
A bell chimed signaling someone's entry. His gaze shifted to the entrance and there she was again... Merry. She paused for a bit and looked at his direction.
He nodded at her in greeting but she turned her head away, completely ignoring him and headed straight for the bar.
Merry sat on an open seat, a fair distance away from everyone. She leaned forward, burrowing her head in her arms. It's like a routine to her by now. Her party mates would try to get to know her and try to bond with her; she'd give them a cold shoulder in reply until they gave up and left her alone.
Alone.
A bitter chuckle escaped her lips.
For as long as she could remember, she had always had friends. People to talk to, people who cared. She was easy to get along with, her beauty and charm certainly helped with that. A wistful look crossed her features, remembering the times when Ogu teased her about it. He'd overexaggerate, telling her about how his heart raced every time she showed off her pearly whites. Mutsumi would then bonk him in the head, calling him an idiot and Hayashi and Michiki would be laughing good-naturedly at his expense.
She loved them — her party, her friends, her family...
When she lost them. Her world shattered. Along with her heart. It hurt.. it hurt so much. The scar it left her was deep, so deep that she shunned everyone around her. The notion of getting close to someone only to lose them later frightened her. She didn't want that. Once was enough.
And so, she closed herself off. Becoming prickly, distant, cold — Encasing her heart in an icy shell to protect herself from the pain. Feelings of empathy, friendship and love were lost to her. No one will get to her and no one will hurt her, never again.
It didn't matter if she became hated for it. It didn't matter if they shunned her. What did it matter to her? It was still easy to join parties, priests are always in high demand after all. Most creatures in Alterna knew that the priest was the backbone of the party, so they were often targeted and have the highest death rate of all classes.
'Priest…' A half-hearted chuckle broke past her, the spite dripping off her lips. 'What kind of priest lets her friends die… Trash. Useless. I'm a useless priest.' She leaned forward, burrowing her head in her arms even further.
Naruto's eyes lingered on her before dropping back to his meal. She seemed adamant in her decision to ignore him, so he figured he'd do her a favor and give her space.
Resting his forehead on his knuckles, he took note of the scab mark left by her sudden bite from earlier.
My social ability still proves to be inadequate.'
Hinata had always teased him about his inability to understand social cues and it frustrated him to no end. He had tried studying about it in the library, heck, he had even asked her to teach him, to no avail. She'd always encourage him, telling him that it'd come in time. For now, he decided he still had a long way to go considering he messed up with something as simple as a greet—
"-aid leave me alone, you swine!"
The sound of glass shattering rang throughout the tavern.
...
He turned his head toward the source.
Merry was hunched over the counter, breathing heavily while holding a broken mug. A beefy man stood before her, cradling his bleeding face where shards of glass punctured through.
The man shook his head, wiping the blood of his face, "Why you-?! Don't you know who I am, you skank?! Y-you—! I'll make you pay for this!" The man yelled, making his way toward her, with loud stomps, teeth barred in an angry snarl.
Merry grabbed her staff, preparing to bash his head in only to freeze at the sight of the person behind the drunk.
The drunkard turned around to face whatever it was she was looking at and found a menacing looking blonde with unnerving blue eyes.
The blonde walked past him without even a side glance, acting like he didn't exist.
"What the hell do you want blo—"
Naruto interrupted him, "—Merry-san, I ask as your party member, do you need assistance?"
The drunkard clenched his fists, digging his nails into his flesh and turned his gaze toward her saying in a loud voice, "Oi, girly, tell your boyfriend to buzz off!"
She was about to refute that statement but was interrupted as the drunk attempted to strike with a cheap shot only for Naruto to duck under the strike, grab the back of the guy's head, and drive it straight through the table — sending splinters flying in the air.
Naruto kept his grip on the guy's twitching body for abit, then he stood up, dusting himself off. He turned around, making his way over toward the entrance and raising an arm in a parting wave behind him, "We'll meet at the same spot. See you tomorrow." he said to her.
The door opened and a party of six came in. The leader, a man wearing a full set of black scale armor paused and took stock of the blonde.
Naruto brushed past the armored guy, giving a quiet, "Excuse me," as he made his way out, the door clicking shut behind him.
…
…
…
The man shook himself and sat at a table with his group, a look of intrigue crossing his face.
Hushed voices bursted off the lips of the patrons, gossips running off from one mouth to the next as the people talked about the event that had transpired.
All the while, Merry had kept her eyes locked on the entryway where he had left.
XXXX
"Good morning…" he stood at the same spot meeting spot from before. With that same irritating impassive look on his face.
Crossing her arms in front of her, she said, "I didn't ask for your help,"
His head tilted to the side, a clueless look on his face.
"Pardon?"
Her lips pressed together, a slight frown marred her face, "...Last night, I didn't need your help."
His eyes lit up with understanding, then his brows furrowed, "Ah… I'm confused...did you want him to hurt you…?"
Her eyebrow twitched. The nerve! She couldn't tell if he was actually confused or if he was making a mockery out of her but either-or it made her fume.
"I had it under control!" she snapped, giving him a piercing stare. She shook her head, "Look, I understand you were only trying to help," Her brows narrowed down, "but don't interfere with my business... Got it?"
He paused, then nodded his head at her.
"So, who's our next target?"
She received a parchment from him, after skimming through it, she gave him an incredulous look.
"Are you an idiot?"
"I assure you that I am not," he replied.
"You want to take on a Monster Rex... with only the two of us!" she exclaimed, she's usually a lot more level headed than this, but this… this was just ridiculous.
"You don't need to fight it. I only need you to heal me after, in case I get injured." Naruto pointed out.
Rubbing an aching migraine from her temple, she shook her head at him, "That's not the point,"
"...What do you mean then?"
"It takes at the very least ten soldiers to down a Monster Rex, we'll need even more if we plan on taking an Ogre type Rex."
Naruto hummed in thought, then he turned to face her, "It's fine."
"Haven't you listened to anything I've said?" she debated whether he misheard her, or just severely overestimated his own capabilities.
Don't get her wrong, she knew he was strong, he wouldn't be able to solo a troll camp if he wasn't, but taking on a Monster Rex with only two members was suicide. There have been multiple twenty men groups who've hunted a Monster Rex and failed.
"Merry-san," he looked her in the eyes. His eyes filled with assurance "it's fine."
Merry pinched the bridge of her nose, her lips lowering down to a scowl. "Look, just… I don't need you needlessly throwing your life away. I—"
"—I won't." He said.
Blue locked with azure as his eyes caught hers. It surprised her, she didn't think those dull blue eyes were capable of expressing any emotion yet alone exude such confidence. It made him...human for once. It assured her, it compelled her, telling her that all would be fine. It made her want to believe in him — but she couldn't.
She had lost her party for the same reason after all. Complacency. Victory made them ignorant of the fact that they've only been winning by paper-thin margins. Winning and losing was the difference between life and death. There were no redos, she couldn't afford to make that same mistake again, no matter what she felt.
Merry crossed her arms together, her lips setting itself into a firm line.
"No," she said, "If you want to go, go. But you'll have to find someone else," a pause, her voice lowered almost like a whisper this time, "...I don't want your blood in my hands."
'Luminaris knows it's already stained too much.' she thought bitterly.
Naruto's eyes jerked up surprise, a memory surging through his thoughts.
"No, I refuse. Find a different way." her lavender orbs raised up to meet his, she stood firm, unwavering.
Despite being denied, he felt something evoke within him. An unusual kindle of life lit up in his eyes. She reminded him of something he'd forgotten. Something...important. Closing his eyes, a ghost of a smile flitted across his lips, "Fine."
Misunderstanding his reply, her lips tightened to a purse. She resigned herself, slipping an indifferent mask on her face, "I understand, Goodbye.", she said it in the most casual way possible. It didn't bother her anyway. He was just another number to add to the long list of people she'd burnt bridges with.
Turning around, she got in a few steps forward before his voice cut her off, "Merry-san, where are you going?"
"H-huh?" She scrunched her brow at him, confusion laced in her voice, she asked "Didn't you want me to leave?"
The blonde raised an eyebrow at her and said, "No, I was going to ask you which quest you'd want to do instead."
Merry had a sudden urge to hide in a hole. She colored up, her cheeks radiating heat. She looked away from him, a cold glare settling down on her flushed face. "W-why didn't you say so then?!" she said, her voice betrayed her looks.
She stomped her way past him in the direction of the nearest request board. Trying her damndest not to show the embarrassed flush on her cheeks.
A pleasant tingle bloomed in his chest. It was warm but it also stung a little. He knew not what it was, but he knew what caused it.
"I can't follow your orders...not if it means losing your life." she gripped her fists tightly, defying him.
XXXX
The fire crackled, becoming bright and vivid, flames licked the wood as the campfire ignited. Naruto leaned back, idly poking at the burning twigs with a stick. He craned his neck back to look at his blue-haired companion.
Merry had just finished setting up her tent, ready to turn in for the night. He had volunteered to keep watch while she slept. He didn't mind. He'd gone for longer days without sleep. Also, It gave him a valid excuse to avoid the nightmares that have been plaguing his dreams.
They had taken a request to hunt a gnoll pack leader called Albino. Like most gnolls, Albino lived in the wild plains of Aravakia. Gnolls functioned much like any pack would - they lived together, ate together, and hunted together. There were multiple packs of gnolls that wandered the plains and every pack had a single leader to command them.
Unfortunately, they didn't encounter Albino's group today. It took them about five hours to get from Alterna to here and they had spent the remaining daylight scouring the plains for the gnoll leader. So, rather than waste time going back and forth from here to Alterna, they decided to camp here for the night.
Hearing a light shuffle to the side, he turned to see Merry sitting a short distance from him. Her head turned away from him, looking at him from the corner of her eye. She opened her mouth, and closed it. She was struggling, looking like she wanted to say something.
He asked, "Can I help you?"
Merry's gaze dropped to the ground. Eyes narrowed a bit. She seemed angry, the cold scowl on her face attested to that, but there was a hint of uncertainty in her eyes. She opened her mouth to say something but no words came out.
For a moment, she gave her best impression of a fish, having had enough she turned her gaze aside glaring at the dirt.
"L-listen, If you need rest, w-wake me up," she silently cursed at herself, tripping over her words, "I don't want you falling asleep and leave us defenseless."
Naruto paused, his half-lidded eyes blinked once and spoke in a quiet voice, "...Ok."
…
Merry fidgeted on her spot.
…
"Merry-san," Naruto said, his voice startled her a bit. Turning to face him, her eyes widened seeing the corners of his cheeks creased up a bit, "Thank you… but I really don't mind…" he said.
'...a smile...he smiled?' her eyes locked on him in wonderment.
The sincerity laced in his voice caught her by surprise. His smile...even more so. For a moment, he didn't look like the unemotional machine she perceived him to be. There was something different with him. She couldn't put a finger on it, but it was there.
Realizing that she'd been staring, Merry shook her head and began to say, "Goo…" she caught herself, mouth parted halfway — it morphed to a scowl and she turned around, briskly walking inside of her tent, leaving the sentence unfinished.
Naruto guessed that she meant to say "Goodnight.", he didn't understand why she didn't finish saying it but simply wrote it off as something he couldn't understand due to his lack of social awareness.
He leaned back. Eyes gazing up the night sky. The moon's red gleam still uneased him. It didn't feel natural. Abnormal. Not that he's one to talk. He's the very embodiment of abnormality. A person who can't discern from his emotions. He couldn't tell whether he was a tool masquerading as a man, or a man who had become a tool.
His eyes drifted closed, letting his senses take ahold of him. Meditating had always been one of his favori— His eyes snapped open just in time to catch the shaft of an arrow, a tip away from piercing his pupil.
A bone-chilling laughter permeated throughout the camp.
The blonde shinobi unsheathed his blade. Blade poised to defend himself, he slowly moved backwards to the tent entrance. He was just about to call out for Merry, but he didn't need to as she bursted out of the tent weapon in hand. Her hair was disheveled, out of its usual ponytail, her blue locks framing her back.
Merry raised her staff up in a guarded position, "How many?", she asked, an edge in her voice, cold and serious.
"I counted three, but I believe there's more," he replied.
His blue orbs kept vigilant watch over his surroundings, he couldn't see much, the tall grass of the plains providing camouflage for his opponents. Seeing movement, he turned around so that they were back to back, covering both directions.
"Get ready," he said. Merry tightened her hold on her staff, her eyes darting from side to side, looking for their foes.
A branch snapped to his left.
The blonde's hand blurred, he withdrew a throwing knife and chucked it at the source of the sound.
A loud yelp echoed throughout the plains as the knife punctured flesh. A figure charged toward his right. Turning to face the creature, he struck with a swift left swing of his blade.
His eyes widened in surprise when his opponent ducked under the strike. It made to counter with an upward slash of its claws and he prepared to block only for the blunt end of Merry's staff to smack its face.
It staggered back with a yelp, holding its bruised muzzle.
He got a clear look of his opponent. He couldn't tell how tall it was as it was on all fours, crouched on its hind legs, if he were to guess it'd stand at about 7 feet in height. Its head looked like that of a hyena's. Spots and stripes marked its greenish grey skin. Over its head is a reddish grey mane. It held a scimitar and wore light leather armor.
"Gnolls," Merry said, narrowing her eyes, "they're agile, flexible and have great reflex, be careful."
Naruto nodded his head, a frown forming on his face, he had gotten rusty.
For the last few months, he'd only been fighting goblins, his recent troll raid being the only exception. Contrary to popular belief, fighting doesn't always improve your skills. It can in fact, hinder it especially if you've only been fighting opponents who fight with the same style. Due to his inexperience, he hadn't expected the gnoll to move the way it did. Its movement was more like that of a beast than a man.
Merry then formed a hexagon with her hand and chanted, "O light, under the divine grace of Lord Luminous… [BLAME]." She threw her palm out toward the gnoll.
A bright beam of light connected causing it to spasm. Seeing the opportunity, Naruto closed the distance between them and swung — severing the gnoll's neck.
He jumped back to his previous position behind Merry. Eyes waiting for their foes' next move. He gave her a side glance, "Interesting spell."
Merry felt the corners of her mouth twitch upward, before pursing her lips together and prickly said, "Pay attention." She raised her staff up, blocking a spear strike, narrowly avoiding getting skewered in the head.
The spear gnoll gave a shrill cry as a tanto pierced its front, stabbing straight through its heart. Naruto yanked the sword upwards, tearing through its shoulder. The gnoll dropped to the ground, dead — blood spooling beneath its corpse.
Feeling the wind shift behind him, Naruto swung himself to the left. An arrow landing on his previous position a few milliseconds after. Followed by another, and another, and another — Naruto had to go on the defensive, dodging and skidding on the ground as arrows continued to rain on him.
Their opponents let out another bout of their annoying laughter. Their shill voices reverberating throughout the field.
"Naruto!" Merry called out to him. Beckoning for him to come to her, the blonde complied and dashed toward her, returning to his spot behind her.
"Cover me," she said. Naruto nodded his head, keeping a firm grip on his sword.
She narrowed her eyes, chanting, "O light, under the divine grace of Lord Luminous… [PNEUMA]."
A mystical blue-green cloud appeared beneath them, bright green smoke like fumes emitting from it. An arrow flew toward the two, Naruto prepared to intercept it but it, dissolved to nothingness as soon as it touched the fumes.
"This spell blocks any ranged physical attacks." Merry said, "As long as we stay inside this field, their attacks are harmless."
Their foes made a few more attempts to breach the spell with their arrows, then realizing how futile its efforts were, stopped the barrage. Two gnolls emerged from within the tall grass. One wielded a short-sword and the other had a steel spiked mace, both creatures had a crossbow strapped to their back, and a quiver of bolts strapped by their hips.
The sword gnoll let out a howl and charged at the two, its companion following in tow. Naruto dashed forward meeting them in a clash.
Naruto's blade met the gnoll's short-sword with a resounding clang. Sparks flew as both blades grinded against each other. He weaved around a mace strike, keeping his sword locked against the sword-gnoll, and gave a harsh kick to the mace-gnoll's knee. The bones broke with a repulsive crack. The mace-gnoll shrieked falling to the ground on its front, cradling its injured knee.
Its companion tried to help its injured friend only for a beam of light to hit it. It fell to its knees, dazed and confused. It looked up just in time to see a sword descending on its head.
A wet squelch signified its death as Naruto's tanto split its skull into two.
The mace-gob, seeing its companion meet a brutal demise, quivered and tried to scream but gurgled blood instead as a knife landed on its throat. Silencing it.
Naruto and Merry, kept their stances, waiting for any other threats.
Finding none, Merry dropped her guard down and approached the nearest corpse, looking to loot any possible valuables.
Naruto remained guarded. His instincts were acting up. There was a strange sense of foreboding, like he forgot something important… his eyes widened in realization.
Feeling a presence behind her, Merry whirled around, and froze staring with wide eyes as a giant white-skinned gnoll with a knife lodged in its eye, materialized in front of her, axe poised to swing toward her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the inevitable taste of death.
Time stood still for Naruto, for a moment he saw an image of Hinata overlap Merry.
'L-Live.'
Blade met flesh in a sickeningly wet squelch.
…
Is this death? Wasn't it supposed to hurt?
She slowly opened her eyes, 'I'm alive?'
Something was different, the white-skinned gnoll had its back to her, standing a few meters away from — her eyes snapped open in shock.
'D-Did he? H-How?'
The albino gnoll had a blade protruding from its skull… with its axe buried in her companion's shoulder.
Naruto let out a low grunt, shoving his blade through the beast and pushing it to the side. He removed his grip on his sword and clutch at his injured shoulder, blood pouring out of the fresh wound.
She shook herself awake, those questions could be answered later… right now. She briskly rushed to his side, holding his shoulder in place as she examined the wound. The cut was wide and thick, the axehead had buried deep into his shoulder, deep enough to touch bone.
Merry grimaced, realizing exactly what she needed to do. Turning to face him, she bit her lips as their gazes met. His eyes remained dull, but he couldn't hide the slight crease on his brow, he was in pain. ROOT Shinobis were trained to have a high pain tolerance, but even someone like him couldn't just simply shrug off a wound this deep.
For her part, Merry couldn't understand why he'd take a blow for her. She had treated him with as much contempt as she had with the others before him. So, she just couldn't fathom why he would...
Gently grabbing the axe head with one hand, and his injured shoulder with the other, she faced him and saying, "I need to pull this out before I can heal you."
A pained nod was her response.
Merry hardened her eyes, focusing on the task at hand. "On three. one, tw —"
Shock ran through him, bolts of lightning shooting through his shoulder as Merry abruptly yanked the axe off. Stifling a scream of pain, he attempted to arch his back but she held him in place, not wanting to aggravate the wound even further.
Acting quickly, she closed her eyes, formed a hexagon with her fingers and chanted, "O light, return to Lumiaris' divine protection… [CURE]." Placing her palms over the wound, a bright green light enveloped it.
Naruto felt the pain slowly ebb away until the only thing left of the deep cut was a fresh pink scar. He couldn't help but muse about how similar it felt to the [Mystical Palm Technique]. The slight warm sensation followed by a slightly itchy feeling as the wound stitched together.
With the pain gone, his thoughts went back to the previous fight. He pulled of a Kawarami. Though it hurt, almost like his coils were soaked in hot magma. That didn't matter though, he'd bear with it. If only for a bit, he could restore the seal.
He formed his hand into a seal, eyes closed in concentration.
This wasn't just for him, it was for everyone in this world. If he could access his chakra again, he could the seal from imploding.
One try, he had to try at least one more time.
Slowly focusing on his hand seal, he commanded his chakra to gather—
— and collapsed instantly as insurmountable pain, the likes he'd never felt before, wracked his body.
He gripped hard at his fists, nails digging into his skin enough to draw blood, as he felt insides melting. He clawed at the ground, until his nails bled, feeling his bones shatter and reshatter themselves over and over. The core of his seal, was the worst spreading and searing everything it touched, his pain receptors worked overdrive sending hot pulses straight to his brain.
He couldn't understand anything anymore, everything felt like a blur. It was getting dark, he could faintly hear Merry's voice calling out to him, growing weaker and weaker.
"Naruto, hey! What's happening?! Wake up!" she exclaimed, giving a few light pats to his cheeks, trying to bring him back to his senses.
Merry didn't know what happened. Everything was going fine, it looked like he was getting better. But then he made a weird symbol with his hand and blood poured out of his orifices, as he writhed on the ground with what looked to be the worst seizure of his life.
Gibberish words left his lips. This is bad, he's getting delirious.
Cursing to herself, she grunted in effort as she hooked his shoulder over her neck, dragging his body to her tent and laying him down on the futon.
She could only hope that he'd wake up before another group of creatures find them.
XXXX
Naruto opened his eyes to the inside of a dimly lit tent. The candle in the lantern beside him was the only source of light. A cough escaped his lips. He felt weak, his body ached, he was burning with a fever but it was bearable.
"Took you…", Merry coughed, "...took you long enough." her voice sounded strained. Turning his head toward her, he realized exactly why his companion sounded even more prickly than usual.
The last two days hadn't been kind to her. She had to hunt for food, refill their water, cover their tracks, and nurse him back to health. Dark bags covered her eyes, her clothes were a mess, filth and grime covered her once pristine attire. The blues and whites of her outfit have turned into a mess of green and brown, stained by grass and dirt respectively.
Merry looked like she was on her last leg. She sat with her knees bent, her back leaning against the wall, using her staff as a crutch to prop herself up.
Painstakingly raising himself up to sit, "H-how," he rasped, Merry gave him a canteen of water which he gratefully accepted, after drinking his fill, he continued, "Ho-how many days..." he coughed, "...was I out."
"Two days."
He was out for that long?
He looked around the tent, seeing a few towels, and a bowl of clay holding water. Outside the tent entrance, he could see a needle rabbit roasting on a firepit and a jug of clay boiling with water.
He gave her a small bow of his head, "Thank you."
"You saved my life," Despite her fatigue, Merry still had the willpower to turn her face away from him hiding the embarrassed flush on her cheeks, "consider us even." She finished keeping her gaze on the side.
The corners of his mouth twitched upward. A warmth burying itself inside of his chest. Merry acted similar to his late apprentice. The way she turned her gaze aside whenever she felt embarrassed. This warmth...he wondered if it meant anything special.
He didn't know — nevertheless, it felt nice to be taken care of. It made him feel...needed. He didn't understand why he wanted to be needed, but again, he just scratched it off as one of the things he wouldn't be able to understand till he improved and became better at understanding people.
"Let's go, I don't want to waste anymore time," Merry said, turning around and leaving the tent. She tried to at least, but then her knees buckled, making her lose her footing. Her vision blurred as gravity took hold of her. She was already unconscious by the time she hit the ground, her fatigue getting the better of her.
A sudden flash of panic flashed through his face, Rushing toward her, he turned her on her back. Her cheeks were flushed red and she was breathing heavily. Placing the back of his hand on her forehead. His eyes narrowed, her skin felt hot to touch, and that's considering the fact that he himself has a fever.
Hooking her legs under his arm and supporting her back with the other, he paused. There was something wrapped around her back, it felt almost like wool. Laying her stomach down on the futon, his hand raised the hem of her battle dress, exposing her back to him.
His fists clenched together.
'You foolish girl.'
Her back was wrapped in bandages, red spots bleeding through the white cloth. There were also a few bruises on the upper part of her back. She must've fought a whole group by herself, those cuts and bruises couldn't have been caused by a single weapon.
'I have to get her to a healer.'
They were miles away from Alterna, but he didn't have a choice. She needed urgent medical attention. Her skin had already started to turn pale. Worst comes to worst, he'd have to use the [Mystical Palm Technique] on her at the risk of his chakra turning his insides into mush.
Strapping the sword from his back to his sides. He took ahold of her and rested her on his back piggyback style. Making sure he had a secure grip of her legs, he took a deep breath and dashed in the direction of Alterna.
For once, something burned within him. Motivating him. A desire, his eyes resolute, a goal set in mind.
"Live, Merry."
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