Author's Note- I would like to thank Nick Tanico for he gave me ideas for this story.
I am actually proud of myself at the fact that I'm doing these one-shot movie crossovers. To be honest, when I started and was in the middle of National Treasure I was worried because I wasn't able to finish it. But I got past that and now doing great with this, so thank you all for your support.
For Naruto's appearance, go to DevientART and look up Assassins Creed-Shinobi. It should show a guy in white robes with two swords on his back. Just imagine the robes to be pitch black with the sashes being blood red and without the leather armour parts until later on. Also, Naruto will keep a few things in his robes, just roll with it and don't ask questions like how did it fit or something.
jarein. deviantart art /Assassin-s-Creed-Shinobi-253723769 (Take away the spaces and it should be the first link. If you do find it, imagine it in black and without the weapons)
Also, when Naruto say's "Toothless", I will start calling the Dragon that from then on.
I would like to thank trebeh for being the Beta for this story. This was actually the first of my stories to actually have a Beta and it actually helped a lot more than I thought.
Please read, like, and review.
[Start]
It was a dark and windy night as a village on an island slept peacefully. The ocean, surrounding the island, had waves crashing into it, not disturbing the residents of the island or the animals. On the island was a simple village with random animals walking about.
"This is Berk; I know it's not much to look at but it is home to everyone here. We like it even though it's always freezing and rarely gets any warm days. You could say my village is sturdy, but I would say strong, persistent, and in most cases, idiotic. It's all been here for seven generations, but every single building is new. There's not much to do here, to be honest. You could fish, hunt, or admire the view from the cliffs"
The goats were still awake even though it was very early in the morning. Right now, they were eating the grass without a care in the world.
"The only problem are the pests"
One of the goats was suddenly grabbed by a large flying creature.
"Most places have mice or mosquitoes, not us. We have..."
Hearing screams, a teen no older than seventeen woke up. Sighing, he went down to the front door of his house and opened it, seeing a sight that is quite common. Looking, you could see people running around and animals running away from a large creature with wings. It saw the teen before spewing fire at him. Without even flinching, the teen shut the door and leaned against it with a bored look as the flames slammed into the door. Because it was made of wood though, the flames began to seep through the door, illuminating everything in the room including the teen. "Dragons" he said in a bored manner. The light revealed the teen to be a young man with spiky blond hair, tanned skin, and three whisker marks on each cheek. His deep blue eyes stared at the flames in slight interest, not bothered by it. He was wearing a thin black robe with leather greaves and a blood red sash that went around his waist. Reopening the door, the teen ran out and jogged throughout the village, seeing others attack the dragons.
"Most people would leave, but not us. We're Vikings. My name is Naruto, and before you ask, it means maelstrom, not fish cakes. Parents believe that hideous names will frighten off gnomes and trolls. In fact, my parents even tried to name me Hiccup. But it's not like our Viking demeanour would scare gnomes or trolls."
An explosion knocked Naruto off his feet, sending him onto his back. A large man suddenly appeared and roared at him. "Morning!" he said before running to a random dragon. Getting up, Naruto continued to run in the direction he was headed in.
Just as he got past the stairs, another Viking picked him up. This one was taller and bigger than the others and his presence demanded respect. "What is he doing out again?" asked the man, pointing to Naruto before looking him in the eye. "What are you doing out? Get inside!" he then threw Naruto away.
"That's Stoick the Vast. Chief of the tribe. They say that when he was just a baby, he popped a dragon's head clean off its shoulders. Do I believe it?"
Stoick looked around and saw a dragon flying away with a goat. Picking a cart up with one hand, he threw it, showing his immense strength. The cart hit the dragon, making it drop the goat.
"Yes I do"
"What have we got?" asked Stoick to one of his men.
"Gronkles, Nadders, Zipplebacks. Oh, and Hoark saw a Monstrous Nightmare" the man listed, his muscles tense in case he needed to move. An explosion went off nearby, causing the man to raise his shield on instinct.
Stoick listened to the Viking and nodded "Any Night Furies?" The man shook his head. "Good" he said, swiping off a piece of debris that fell on his shoulder. Massive torches were raised into the air, allowing everyone to see the dragons that were attacking.
Naruto ran until he was finally at the blacksmith's. "Ah! Nice of you to join the party!" greeted another large man who had a braided moustache, hammering a sword. "I was starting to think you were carried off!"
Putting on a leather apron, Naruto began to gather around the scattered, damaged, weapons. Smirking at what his friend said, he answered "Please, I would beat them before they knew what to do with me."
"They need toothpicks don't they?" the man said in a rhetorical and teasing manner. Naruto just smiled as he began to use the forge to help fix the weapons.
"The meat head with the attitude and interchangeable hands is Gobber. I've been his apprentice for as long as I can remember but I think of him as more of an Uncle. Although I wouldn't admit it out loud of course"
As he gave the final fixed weapon back to a Viking, Naruto saw a bunch of sixteen-year-olds run past, getting water to stop the fire that was spreading through the village.
"If you are wondering who the others are, then I'll tell you. They're names are Fishlegs, Snotlout. The twins are Ruffnut and Tuffnut. And finally, the other girl is Astrid. I've talked to them a few times, mainly because Snotlout is my cousin so he is family, even though he doesn't like me much, but they are all alright"
The teens all threw their water into the flames, but that didn't make a difference. As soon as Astrid used her water, a dragon blew up the house, creating a small explosion that didn't seem to bother the girl.
"Even though they are just putting out fires, I'd rather join them so I can at least help more"
Deciding he could do better outside than in the shop, Naruto tried to leave. Only for Gobber to grab him by his robe's hood and hoist him back into the shop. "Why can't I go out and make my mark?" asked Naruto in annoyance, knowing that this isn't the first time this has happened.
"Well you've made a lot of marks, just in the wrong places," said Gobber.
Naruto just gave his friend a deadpan stare. "And why can't I go out and help?"
Using his good hand, Gobber started to list the reasons. "You can't lift a hammer, you can't use an axe, you can't even use one of these" he said, showing an iron ball connected to a short rope. A Viking from outside the shop took it from Gobber's hand threw it at a dragon, sending it crashing into the ground.
"I can't see any use for using a hammer or axe. You just swing it around and hope to smash something." Sighing, Naruto went further back until he went to another contraption. "Well, I also made this so it could throw at a long distance." The second he touch it, it activated and threw an iron ball, hitting a Viking who passed the shop in the head and knocking him unconscious.
"See, right there is what I'm talking about" Gobber sighed "If you ever want to get out there to fight dragons, then you need to stop...that" he said, gesturing to all of Naruto.
"Really?" asked Naruto in a questioning tone "You just pointed to all of me"
Gobber smiled, seeing that Naruto knew what he was talking about "Yes, that's it! Stop being all of you!" He then tossed Naruto a blunt sword. "You, sword, now." Naruto just grumbled as he took the sword and began to sharpen it against a grinder.
"There are many types of dragons out there, too many to name by memory. But you do remember some, like Gronkles, Nadders, Monstrous Nightmares. But there is one that all Vikings fear, one that never reveals itself. Those that have seen it have never lived to describe it. It is too quick for anyone, and too dangerous. It's called..."
A sound was heard throughout the village, making everyone tense in fear. The second they heard it, they ran away.
"Night Fury"
An explosion went off, making people shout out. Even Stoick was terrified but he hid it well as he led his people.
"No one has ever killed a Night Fury; that's why I'm going to be the first"
Gobber quickly ran to the front of the Forge and changed his hammer to an axe. He looked at Naruto and said, "Stay. Put. There. You know what I mean." He then ran towards the battle, not noticing Naruto had a smirk on his face.
Not long after Gobber left, Naruto was running through the village, avoiding the Vikings that neared him. He was pushing along the catapult he'd made and was intent on taking down the Night Fury. After a while he finally managed to reach a cliff that gave him the perfect spot to aim from. Setting up the catapult, Naruto waited and stared intently at the sky, waiting for a sign of the dragon. He waited for what seemed like hours, cursing slightly as the Night Fury was camouflaged into the night sky. Another sound was heard, showing that the Night Fury was preparing to attack. Suddenly, the defence tower that Naruto was near, exploded and a shadow of the Night Fury flew by for a split second. By accident, Naruto shot the iron ball and net, but it missed and must have frightened the dragon as he heard a loud screech and then a slam. Thanks to the flames, Naruto was able to see a dark dragon, moving under some rubble before flying off in an awkward manner. "I hit it?" muttered Naruto with wide eyes before grinning, "I hit it! Did anyone see that?!" As if answering his question, a dragon that Naruto knew was called a Monstrous Nightmare, climbed up the cliff. "Anyone but you!"
-With Stoick-
As the Viking Chief helped others hold down Nadders, he heard a familiar dragon's roar. Turning, he saw Naruto running and dodging the dragon's swipes with ease. Alarmed, Stoick shouted to his men "Do NOT let them escape!" before running to help Naruto.
-With Naruto-
"Who would have thought this would happen?!" muttered Naruto in annoyance as he continued to dodge the dragon's fire attacks. He took a sharp turn, making the dragon try and follow, only for it to slam into a wall. It quickly recovered and continued to chase after him though. Looking around, Naruto saw that the only shelter available was the last standing giant torch. Naruto turned and saw the dragon was preparing to attack with a lot of fire, so without wasting any more time he ran and hid behind the torch just as the dragon attacked. Seeing that it stopped, leaving only the torch on fire, Naruto peered round it, accidentally leaving his back open for attack. The dragon was about to attack from behind until Stoick suddenly appeared and stopped it in time.
The dragon tried to attack but could not produce and flames, making it widen its eyes in fear. "You're all out" said Stoick as he began to repeatedly hit the dragon with his bare hands and strength alone. After a few hits, the dragon flew away, allowing Stoick to turn and look at Naruto.
"Oh, and there's one thing you should know..."
"Hi, Dad" said Naruto with a sigh as he hung his head. He heard a massive crack and cringed when the torch behind him snapped and fell down, rolling throughout the village, unfortunately allowing some trapped dragons to be freed with goats and sheep. As if gloating, all the dragons flew by the Vikings with their catch, taunting them to try and attack. Unfortunately everyone ran out of weapons so they couldn't, and the dragons were flying too high. Everyone looked at Stoick wondering what he was going to do, especially when his own son caused the trapped creatures to escape. Stoick glared at his son, not in hate but in anger. He grabbed Naruto by his robe's hood and dragged him. "I'm sorry!" shouted Naruto, trying to get his father's attention, but nothing was working. "I know I messed up again, but I can do better!"
"Enough!" shouted Stoick, tired of his son's excuses and promises. They stopped, with everyone watching. "Every time you step outside, disaster follows. Can you not see I have bigger problems? Winters almost here and I have an entire village to feed" he then sighed "Why can't you follow orders like everyone else?"
"I don't want to be like everyone else," confessed Naruto "I want to be me. To prove that I can help, without killing dragons."
Stoick just nodded with another sigh "You are many things, Naruto. And a dragon killer is not one of them." Stoick then looked at his friend, Gobber "Make sure he gets home, I have to go help everyone else rebuild the village." Gobber just nodded as he put a hand on Naruto's shoulder, making them both walk.
The group of teens saw what happened and commented to Naruto as he passed, although Fishlegs didn't say anything because he was friends with Naruto. "Quite the performance" said Tuffnut with his twin sister laughing.
Snotlout spoke next, happy that his cousin messed up big time. "I've never seen anyone mess up that badly! That helped!" he shouted the last part in sarcasm, making Naruto roll his eyes in annoyance. He looked at Astrid but she just glared at him, making Naruto sigh as he continued walking to his house. Neither he nor Gobber said anything as they walked. When they reached the house, Naruto just walked inside as the large man walked away to help the others.
For a minute, Naruto just thought back to everything that happened and then remembered about the dragon he nearly hit 'It flew off into the forest quite slowly. And I'm pretty sure I heard a crash, but that might have been something else' He thought before shrugging. 'Still worth a look.' With that last thought, Naruto went to the back of his house and left. But not before grabbing a knife that could be hidden in his robes and putting his hood up. Running straight into the woods, Naruto searched for what felt like hours, trying to find any proof that a dragon landed here. Looking at his notebook that he always kept hidden in his robes, Naruto scoured off another part of the forest that he was in. Sighing, he closed it. "I was wrong" he muttered "Just like every other thing I do and say." Suddenly, he stumbled a little as he tripped over a stone. He managed to get his footing but froze when he saw the trees in front of him; most were destroyed and toppled over onto the ground. There was even a long trench that he followed after a moment. He reached a hill and looked over, before ducking quickly as he saw a dragon laying on the ground. Taking out his knife, Naruto slowly climbed over the edge and approached the dragon, but looked confused as there were branches on top of it and he could clearly see some blood, showing that it was injured.
Taking a moment to study it, Naruto noticed that it was not a dragon that he had ever seen before, making him realise that he had actually hit the Night Fury. This one had a small body, one that was obviously built for speed. It was completely black all over and the only colour he could see was the yellow eyes that were staring at him. Naruto didn't know what to do. On one hand, he could kill the dragon and prove to everyone that he killed one so they would finally accept him. On the other hand, he just didn't know. He was hesitating and the hand that was holding the knife was shaking. Both dragon and Naruto stared at each other before the dragon closed its eyes, seeming to accept its fate.
It waited but nothing happened, confusing the Night Fury. Then, its eyes widened when it saw Naruto lift branches off of it and start to pull out the larger splinters. It did make a few noises because of the pain, but Naruto realised that it was trying to stay still for him to help. "I did this" it heard Naruto say "So that means I have to fix this." The second the last splinter was out, the Night Fury suddenly jumped and slammed Naruto into a boulder. The first thing Naruto thought he should do was stay perfectly still and not shake from fear. But he ignored that feeling as he stared into the dragon's eyes with his own glare, noticing that it seemed slightly surprised. It then breathed in, looking like it was preparing an attack so Naruto braced himself and almost prayed that he would make out of this alive. He was not prepared for it to roar at him though before jumping and trying to fly away.
Naruto stayed there a few moments longer, processing what just happened. After a minute, he got up and took his knife that he accidentally dropped before putting it back into his robes. Once that was done, he got up and slowly walked back to the village before muttering in shock "The hell just happened?"
A while later, Naruto stealthily approached his house. When he was younger he realised that he could hide from anyone but his father with ease for some reason. Right now he slowly eased the door open, hoping it didn't make a noise. Looking inside his home, he saw Stoick sitting in front of the fireplace, in deep thought. Trying to use this to his advantage, Naruto quietly closed the door and tiptoed to the stairs. He didn't even make it one step as his father said "Naruto" without even looking.
'How does he do that?!' thought Naruto with his right eye twitching in annoyance and a sweat drop appearing on the back of his head.
"I need you talk to you" said the large man, making Naruto sigh.
"I have to talk to you as well," said Naruto, taking a seat on the steps he was on.
Both took a deep breath before talking at the same time: "I caught a dragon/I think it's time you learn/and let it go/to fight dragons" Naruto and Stoick spoke, respectively. "What?" they both said again.
Shaking his head, Stoick said, "You go first, son"
Naruto shook his head. "No, you go first. It's probably more important than what I have to say," he said before thinking 'Not what's more important than freeing a Night Fury.'
"Alright" said Stoick with a sigh, trying to think of the right words "I've talked to Gobber and you will be starting dragon training, first thing in the morning."
Widening his eyes at that, Naruto quickly said, "I should have gone first. Dad, you know I don't want to fight dragons."
"But you'll learn" said Stoick with a smile, already imagining his son killing a dragon in a glorious manner. He then reached over his side and picked up an axe. "You'll need this" he said, handing it to Naruto, who was not use to the weight "When you carry this axe, you carry all of us with you. Which means you walk like us, talk like us, and think like us." He then gestured to all of Naruto "None of this."
"What is it with people doing that?" muttered Naruto.
"Deal?" asked Stoick in a stern manner. Naruto tried to think of an excuse but could not come up with one. "Deal?" he said again but in more of a demanding manner.
Sighing, Naruto realised that he had no choice. "Deal" he said with a frown, which Stoick didn't see.
Satisfied with the answer, Stoick smiled. "Good." He then put on his helmet and picked up a duffel bag "Train hard, I'll be back. Probably."
"And I'll be here, hopefully" muttered Naruto as Stoick left.
-The Next Morning-
Because it was winter, everything froze over due to the decrease in temperature. But no one seemed to mind as they were used to it. Gobber and the group of teens stood in front of a cage as he opened it. "Welcome to dragon Training" he said, noticing that everyone had some type of weapon with them.
Astrid stepped forward first, excited for the training. "This is it" she said to herself "No turning back."
The cage was built to help train new recruits on how to slay dragons and protect themselves. There were multiple doors that held different kinds of dragons, each used for the training.
"I hope I get some serious burns," said Tuffnut with a grin.
His twin had her own words "I hope to get some mauling. Like on my shoulder or lower back."
"Yeah" agreed Astrid with a sigh as she looked around "It's only fun if you get a scar out of it."
"What is wrong with you people?" said Naruto, getting everyone's attention, as they didn't know he was there. He walked forward still carrying the axe but with one hand as it stayed on his shoulder. "Were not here to get injured."
Before anyone could say anything, Gobber began to speak "Let's get started! The recruit that does best will win the honour of killing their first dragon in front of the whole village"
"That's clearly going to be me" gloated Snotlout before pointing his mace at Naruto. "But he doesn't want to kill a dragon, so does that disqualify him or something?" he asked, getting laughs from the twins, an unsure look from Fishlegs, and a head shake from Astrid.
Naruto sighed, already regretting this. Gobber walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. You're not as strong or big as the others. That will make you less of a target. They'll probably see you as sick or insane, and go after the more Viking-like teens." He then pushed the smaller blond forward, making everyone get in a line. Roars and bellows were heard coming from the massive doors. "Behind these doors, are just a few of the many species that you will have to fight. The Deadly Nadder" he said, indicating to a door.
Fishlegs, who was practically bouncing with excitement, said, "Speed eight. Armour sixteen."
"The Hideous Zippleback," continued Gobber.
"Plus eleven stealth, times two," said Fishlegs, a little louder.
"The Monstrous Nightmare,"
"Firepower fifteen!"
"The Terrible Terror,"
"Attack eight, venom twelve!"
Having enough of Fishlegs, Gobber shouted, "Can you stop that?!" Sighing, he went up to the final door "And...the Gronkle" he put his hand on the lever.
Fishlegs hesitated before whispering to Naruto "Jaw strength, eight", who just nodded actually finding this information useful.
Snotlout saw what Gobber was doing and stepped forward. "Whoa, whoa, what are you doing? Aren't you going to teach us first?!"
Smiling at the reaction that he was hoping for, Gobber spoke "I believe in learning on the job." He then pushed the lever down, making the barricade, which was holding the door shut, move out the way. The doors were suddenly slammed open as a Gronkle flew past it. "Today is all about survival." Everyone dove out of the way as the Gronkle flew past them. "If you get blasted, you're dead. Quick, what's the first thing you're going to need?"
Astrid shouted out first, with a smirk. "A shield" she stated, knowing it was right.
"Shields, go! Your most important piece of equipment is your shield. If you have to make a choice between a sword and a shield, go for the shield!" shouted Gobber, making everyone run to a shield. Unfortunately Ruffnut and Tuffnut argued over one before the Gronkle destroyed the shield with a fire attack. "Tuffnut, Ruffnut, you're both out."
"What?" they both asked in a daze before walking to Gobber.
"Those shields are good for another thing. Noise, make lots of it to throw off a dragons aim" advised Gobber, making everyone but the twins start to hit their shield to distract the dragon "All dragons have a limited number of shots. How many does a Gronkle have?"
"Five?" shouted Snotlout.
"No six!" shouted Fishlegs as he raised his shield in the air, which caused the dragon to aim for it.
Gobber laughed, although no one heard it "Correct six! That's one for each of you! Fishlegs, you're out!"
Astrid kept her eyes on the Gronkle, but Snotlout's constant failed attempt at hitting on her was slightly distracting. "So anyway, I'm moving into my parent's basement. You should come by sometime to workout. You look like you work out." Just as he finished his sentence, the Gronkle attacked. Seeing that it was headed her way, Astrid cart wheeled out of the way, making the attack hit Snotlout's shield.
"Snotlout, you're done!" shouted Gobber, enjoying this.
Astrid landed next to Naruto, who also kept his eyes on the dragon. "Lookout!" he shouted as it flew to her side and fired. He moved his shield in time, knowing that Astrid wouldn't have been able to react quickly enough. The attack hit his shield, sending him back a bit as his shield was knocked away. Astrid didn't react but ran away to a safer spot. Naruto jumped out of the way as the Gronkle charged at him and tried to run after his shield. The Gronkle then pushed Naruto into a wall and pinned him there, before charging up its last attack.
But Gobber used his hooked hand and pulled it away, making it fire its last attack into a wall. "And that's six!" he said as he forced the Gronkle back into its pen. "Go back to bed, you overgrown sausage!" Once the doors were shut, he looked at the recruits. "That's enough for today, but remember. A dragon will always, always, go for the kill" he said, saying the final part as he looked at Naruto.
-Back in the Forest-
"So why didn't you?" muttered Naruto as he examined where he found the Night Fury. Looking in the direction that the dragon flew off to, Naruto couldn't decide if he should follow it or not. Finally, deciding to throw caution to the wind, Naruto followed and after a few minutes, came across a hidden cove with a pristine clear pool. "Beautiful," commented Naruto before looking around "but not the thing I'm looking for." Just as he was about to walk away, an object caught his eye. Looking, he saw it was a small pile of black scales. Picking one up, he began to inspect it, before jumping slightly when the dragon he was looking for, flew right past him. He watched as it tried to climb a wall before falling and flying to the ground, but its landing was off. Naruto then watched as it tried to fly away a few more times but couldn't. Getting out his notebook, he drew the dragon but left out half of the dragon's tail. 'That would explain why you're not flying' he thought before cursing slightly when he dropped his pencil.
When the pencil hits the ground, its sound echoed all over the cove, getting the dragon's attention. It looked at Naruto, and both stared at each other for a while before the Night Fury seemed to look away in boredom.
-Later that Night-
As the day passed, a storm blew into the village, raining heavily on anyone that stood outside. Naruto just walked through the village with his hood up, not minding the rain as he walked towards the Great Hall. When he entered the hall, he saw the other recruits talking to each other and Gobber. He walked up to them, removing his hood. "Where did Naruto go wrong?" asked Gobber, whilst Naruto rolled his eyes.
"He showed up?" said Ruffnut with a grin.
"He didn't get eaten," said Tuffnut with a grin, similar to his sister.
Finally Astrid spoke "He's never where he should be." Naruto didn't say anything as he took a plate of food and walked passed their table, not even glancing as they moved about so he wouldn't sit next to them.
Gobber smiled when he heard Astrid's answer "Thank you, Astrid" said Gobber, just as Naruto sat down at the next table. Gobber held a book in his hand before placing it on the table that the recruits were eating at. "The Dragon's Manual, everything we know about every dragon we know of." Thunder was then heard as it roared across the sky. "No attacks tonight" said Gobber with a sigh, knowing everyone's reaction "Study up" he then left the recruits to themselves.
As everyone started to complain, or in Fishlegs' case, gloat about knowing the book, Naruto glanced at it from where he sat. 'That book might know about Night Furies' he thought, before seeing the others walk away, only leaving him and Astrid. Getting up, he walked over to her. "Are you going to-"
He was interrupted as Astrid pushed the book his way. "Read it" she said before running to catch up with the other recruits.
"Took the words out of my mouth," muttered Naruto as he took the book. Going back to his seat, he opened it up and began to read. He read the information on a lot of dragons before finally coming to the page marked 'Night Fury' Naruto then furrowed his brows as the page was blank save for a couple sentences. There wasn't even a picture to show what they looked like. He then began to read the page:"Speed, unknown. Size unknown. The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this dragon. Your only chance, hide and pray it does not find you." Naruto sat back then in confusion before taking out his notebook and looking at the drawing he drew of the dragon.
-The Next Day-
For the rest of the night, Naruto thought about what he read and what he had seen from the Night Fury. Everything he knew of dragons didn't seem to add up for this particular one, and it was confusing him to no end. Now he was in the Training Grounds, looking at Gobber whilst staying out of the way from the others and the Deadly Nadder that they were up against in a maze. "Hey, I was just wondering if there was any more information on Night Furies. The book was quite vague on that." Hearing a noise, Naruto turned and saw the Nadder looking at him before attacking with fire. Easily dodging it, Naruto ran around a corner, staying out of its sight.
"Focus Naruto. You're not even trying," commented Gobber from outside the Training Grounds. "Today is all about attack." The Nadder hopped from wall to wall, looking for a target. "The Nadders are quick and light on their feet. Your job is to be quicker and lighter."
"I'm really beginning to question your teaching methods!" Naruto heard Fishlegs shout, avoiding the Nadder's spike attack.
Acting as if he didn't hear the larger teen, Gobber picked his teeth whilst giving more advice. "Look for its blind spot. Every dragon has one. Find it, hide in it, and strike." Both Ruffnut and Tuffnut ran until they had to stop right in front of the Nadder. Thankfully it didn't see them but that didn't stop the twins from arguing. "Blind spot, yes. Deaf spot, not so much," commented Gobber when he saw the Nadder attack the twins.
Everyone ran by and Naruto stopped to ask Gobber another question. "Is there any way to sneak up on a Night Fury? Like it's blind spot?"
"No one's ever met one and lived to tell the tale," said Gobber with a sigh "Now get in there!"
"Naruto" Astrid whispered harshly, getting the blonds attention. Looking, he saw her and Snotlout crouching next to a corner, and Astrid telling him to be quiet and get down. Once he was down, Astrid looked round the corner and quickly reared her head back just as the dragon appeared. Thinking quickly, she rolled to the other side, managing to avoid the dragon noticing her with Snotlout following after.
Naruto rolled after, but Snotlout threw a small stone at him hoping to impress Astrid. The stone hit Naruto's shield, which caused two things. One was for the shield to move slightly and cause Naruto to fall on his ass. The other was the noise getting the Nadder's attention as it roared at Naruto. Quickly moving, the dragon was forced to jump over a couple of walls to try and catch its prey. It stopped in front of Astrid and Snotlout and, again, roared. "Watch out babe, I'll take care of this" said Snotlout as he pushed Astrid away and threw his mace at the dragon, but it wasn't even close as it sailed widely past dragon. Snotlout looked embarrassed. "The sun was in my eyes, Astrid" he said before the dragon attacked. "What do you want me to do? Block out the sun? I can do that, I just don't have the time," he said, trying to sound strong and cool as he and the others ran away. For some reason, the Nadder chased after Astrid as it banged into the walls, knocking them all over.
Naruto was about to ask Gobber another question until he heard both Gobber and Astrid shout "Naruto!" Turning, he saw Astrid jump over the wall behind him and fall towards him. Acting on pure instinct, he spun round, grabbed Astrid by the waist whilst she was still in the air, and then use his shield to catch her axe. Ruffnut and Tuffnut saw this so the brother commented, "Love on the battlefield."
"She could do better," said back the sister.
Naruto saw the Nadder follow over the wall so he continued to spin and accidentally made it look like Astrid swung her axe and slam his shield onto the dragon's head, basically defeating it, before letting go of the blond girl. "Well done, Astrid" said Gobber, thinking it was Astrid who managed the swing.
"Is this some kind of game to you?" asked Astrid to Naruto angrily as they stood apart from each other, thinking he did all that for fun "Out parents war is about to become ours. Figure out which side you're on"
She was about to walk away, until she heard Naruto speak "I already know which side I'm on. I'm on the side that sheds the least amount of blood." He then walked past her without seeing her shocked look.
-Later that day-
Naruto walked through the forest towards the cover where the Night Fury was. "Figure out which side you're on" he heard Astrid's voice resound through his head. He sighed to himself. "The side that sheds the least amount of blood" muttered Naruto. He didn't know why he said that, knowing he should have said that he was against dragons. But something stopped him and made him say what he said. A sound to his left caught his attention. Looking, he saw a large fish bob out of the water. 'I wonder if dragons eat fish' thought Naruto before shrugging and taking out a knife.
A half hour later, Naruto was now standing at the entrance to the cove. Looking around from where he was standing, Naruto could not see where the Night Fury was, so he threw the fish he was carrying into the cove. After a few moments, nothing happened. Raising an eyebrow, Naruto slowly walked into the cove, careful of where he was stepping in case it was a twig or something. He stopped at the fish and picked it up, before hearing a light growl noise behind him. Turning around slowly, Naruto saw the Night Fury stalk towards him. As it approached him, Naruto noticed that it's slit pupils widened as it saw the fish, but just as it was about to the fish, it's pupils turned back to slits as it backed away, growling. Wondering why, Naruto looked at himself and saw that his hidden dagger was sticking out slightly from its pocket on his chest. Thinking it was that, Naruto took it out with two fingers, careful as he watched the dragon, and then tossed it into the water.
The Night Fury watched the dagger go into the water, before looking back at Naruto with its pupil's back to being wider. It even sat up slightly, reminding Naruto of a dog for some reason. "Come get it, girl?" he said, not sure if the dragon would react or why he even said girl. He was surprised though when the dragon growled at him. "Boy?" said Naruto before the growling stopped, making Naruto sweat drop slightly. The Night Fury approached Naruto carefully and opened its mouth to eat the fish. Naruto then furrowed his brow when he saw that the Night Fury had no teeth "Toothless? I could have sworn you had teeth before" he muttered, and as if the dragon heard him, he revealed his teeth and snatched the fish straight out of Naruto's hands, "But that sounds like a good name for you though."
Toothless ate the fish in a few bites and he seemed to enjoy it, if him fervently licking his lips was any indication. Seeing Naruto, his eyes turned back into slits and pushed Naruto against a boulder. Both stared at each other, and Naruto was about to do something, before seeing Toothless act like he was choking. Suddenly, the dragon regurgitated a part of the fish and made it land on Naruto's lap. Confused by this, Naruto looked at the fish and then back at the dragon, only to see said dragon looking at him like he was expecting something. They continued to stare for a few more seconds until Toothless glanced at the fish and then back at Naruto. Seeing this, Naruto looked at the fish and sigh as he figured what he was supposed to do.
He bit into it, not enjoying it at all. Naruto chewed and saw Toothless make a swallowing motion, making him mentally sigh and turn green slightly. Wanting to finish quickly, Naruto swallowed and then shivered. "That was not pleasant" he muttered. He looked at Toothless before giving the injured dragon a grin. Seeing the grin, Toothless tried to mimic that made Naruto widen his eyes in amazement. Unconsciously, Naruto reached out but Toothless saw this and growled as his teeth appeared, before flying to the other side of the cove. Naruto stood and watched as the dragon landed and breathed fire on the ground before lying down on the scorched ground.
Hearing something tweeting, Toothless looked up with curiosity in his eyes. He saw a bird on a tree branch right above and followed it with his eyes before seeing Naruto standing right next to him. The blond quirked an eyebrow when he saw the dragon look bored at him and turn away. He then saw Toothless' tail and noticed its damaged tip. He reached out to touch it, but Toothless moved and glared, making Naruto look apologetic as he walked away.
Later that day, around sunset, Toothless was hanging from a tree like a bat. He looked around, wondering where that pestering human was until he finally saw him. Not that far away, Naruto sat on a small rock, using a stick to draw two things. One was Toothless, although the drawing was a bit crude. The other drawing was a fox but Naruto seemed to add his hair and whisker marks to it. He didn't stop drawing as he saw Toothless' shadow appear next to his, distracting him slightly as he drew nine tails to the fox. He was about to correct his mistake until he saw Toothless waddle away. He watched as the dragon used his teeth to rip a small tree from the ground and began to draw, using the bottom of the tree. A few times, Naruto had to either duck or bend backwards just to avoid getting hit by the tree as Toothless passed by.
Naruto continued to watch in fascination for a few minutes until he saw Toothless stare at him with happiness and expectancy. Confused, Naruto looked down and walked forward, accidentally stepping on the drawing, which Toothless growled at. Raising an eyebrow at that action, Naruto lifted his foot and Toothless stopped and then started again as Naruto put his foot back down. Making sure not to step on the lines, Naruto began to move around and follow the drawing. He did this until he accidentally backed up against Toothless. Turning, they stared at each other until Naruto raised his hand and waited before closing his eyes. Toothless seemed to debate about something before slowly resting his muzzle against his hand. Opening his eyes in shock, Naruto saw Toothless open his own, before flying away to the other side of the cove, leaving an astounded Naruto by himself.
-The next night-
Naruto spent all of the day, thinking about what happened at the cove. Everything that has happened had done nothing but confuse Naruto. Right now he was sitting on top of a catapult tower with the others as Gobber was telling stories, but he wasn't listening. Shaking his head, Naruto began to listen to the others, only to roll his eyes at what Snotlout said, "I swear I'm so angry right now. I'll avenge your beautiful hand and your beautiful foot. I'll chop off the legs of every dragon I fight, with my face!"
'God damn moron' thought Naruto, accidentally letting out a scoff. Thankfully no one but Astrid heard him, but she decided to ignore it.
Gobber shook his head at what Snotlout said, "No, it's the wings and the tail you really want. If it can't fly, it can't get away. A downed dragon, is a dead dragon."
Naruto widened his eyes when he heard this, instantly thinking of Toothless' tail. 'That's why he can't fly! Without his tail fin, he's as good as dead' Narrowing them, Naruto stood up and ran down the steps with only two people noticing. Gobber was the first but ignored so he could continue to eat and then go rest. Astrid looked to where Naruto sat but grew confused when she saw he wasn't there. Standing up, she went to the stairs and saw Naruto running down with great speed.
'What is he doing?' thought Astrid before shaking her head and going back to sit down.
Naruto was now in his study room, where pictures of contraptions and dragons were scattered about the room. He took out his notebook and opened it to the page of where he drew Toothless. Smiling, he drew in the missing tail before running of to where he worked part time, the Forge. For the rest of the night, he worked non-stop as he used the forge, hammer, anything to help him build a fake fin for Toothless. It was around five in the morning by the time he finished and Naruto smiled at his work before packing his gear, hoping that his idea would work.
He walked through the village and into the forest before stopping at a small lake. He stayed there for an hour and fished for countless fish, all for Toothless. It was around dawn when he arrived at the Cove. "Hey Toothless! I hope you're hungry because I brought breakfast!" he called as the dragon appeared in front of him. Knocking over the bag of fish he was carrying, all the fish fell out and onto the ground. Naruto smiled when he saw Toothless lick his lips "It's all for you buddy" he said before noticing Toothless snarl at something. Confused, Naruto looked and saw it was an eel before picking it up and throwing it away, idly noticing that Toothless stopped snarling. "Yeah, eel isn't that nice anyway." Toothless then began to eat the fish, which made him happy. Naruto just slowly walked behind Toothless and stopped right next to the dragon's tail. Setting the fin down, Naruto sat on the tail to make sure it wouldn't move as he attached it. It worked, but was annoying because Toothless kept trying to sway his tail. However, Naruto never noticed that when he stood up, Toothless noticed a difference in weight of his tail as he dropped his wings and had a look of utter disbelief. As Naruto was distracted, Toothless spread his wings and suddenly shot forward, accidentally bringing Naruto with him as he flew higher and tried to leave the cove.
Naruto did shout in surprise and he grabbed onto the tail just to stay where he was, but furrowed his brow in confusion when he saw the mechanical fin was closed when it should be open. Taking hold of it, not noticing that Toothless was now falling towards the wall to the cove. Grabbing hold of the hand-made fin, Naruto yanked it open and accidentally forced Toothless to fly straight up into the air before levelling out. Moving the fin, up and down, Naruto managed to move Toothless so they would be flying across the cove. "I did it!" shouted Naruto in excitement, happy that his latest invention worked. Toothless, unfortunately, took a sharp turn and actually shot Naruto forward, making him skip across the water. Evening himself out as he skipped along the water, it looked like Naruto skidded back before he fell to his knees on the shore. But because Naruto wasn't controlling the fin anymore, Toothless also slammed into the water near the shore.
-The Next Day-
"Today is all about teamwork," said Gobber from outside the training grounds. As soon as one of the doors to a dragon was unblocked, it exploded open, covering the area in smoke. Everyone went into pairs. Naruto with Fishlegs, Astrid with Ruffnut, and Snotlout with Tuffnut. Every single one of them was also carrying a bucket of water each. "Now, a wet dragon head can't light its fire. The Hideous Zippleback is extra tricky. One head breathes gas, and the other head lights it. Your job is to know which is which."
The smoke continued to spread, encircling each pair. As Naruto and Fishlegs looked around from where they are, Fishlegs spoke about the Zippleback "Razor sharp, serrated teeth that inject venom for pre-digestion. It prefers ambush attacks, crushing victims with its-"
"Hey" spoke Naruto, interrupting Fishlegs "Time and place. This is neither." As the smoke began to clear slightly, Naruto noticed a few figures near him and could hear Snotlout talking, before he heard Astrid and Ruffnut shouting. "Dumbass" said Naruto out loud when he heard Tuffnut and Snotlout compare the girls to dragon, and then laughed when he saw both guys get hurt by the girls.
After a few seconds, Tuffnut ran past them, shouting "Oh I am hurt! I am very much hurt!"
"Chances of survival are dwindling into single digits now" commented Fishlegs. A dragon's head appeared from the smoke, acting like a snake, as it seemed to slither through the air. Fishlegs panicked as he threw his water onto the dragon, only to watch as it opened its mouth and release a green gas "Wrong head" said Fishlegs as he chuckled nervously. The Zippleback head then released a lot more gas, scaring Fishlegs' as he ran away.
"Fishlegs!" shouted Gobber in concern.
The second Zippleback head appeared in front of Naruto. Knowing that this one ignites the gas, Naruto threw his water at the head, only for it to jerk its head back and avoid the water "Well that's not good" said Naruto as he watched what happened.
"Naruto!" shouted Gobber as he entered the training ground, but everyone stopped as they saw the Zippleback move away from Naruto.
Raising his left arm, the sleeve revealed an eel, which the dragon saw and reeled back in disgust. "Get back in there" ordered Naruto with a fake glare. Once the Zippleback was back in its cave "Very good" said Naruto, deciding not to put throw the eel into the cave as the dragon had done as told. Closing the doors, Naruto turned and stopped when he saw everyone stare at him "What?" When no one answered, Naruto continued, "Well if everything's done then I shall leave." With that, Naruto just walked away.
-Throughout the Week-
Throughout the night, Naruto created a saddle that he would be able to put on Toothless. The only problem was actually putting it on, as the dragon seemed to think that they were playing and ran away every time Naruto came near him. Once the saddle was on, Naruto attached a small rope to Toothless' fake fin and when they flew, he tugged on it in random directions. Unfortunately he tugged to hard and made Toothless go left and for Naruto to fall off. Getting an idea, Naruto created a safety line that made sure to keep him on Toothless as they flew. When they tested it the next day, they crash-landed in a field of large grass; thankfully, it was a soft landing. When Naruto found Toothless, after falling form the crash, he saw the Night Fury rolling around on the grass, enjoying the feel of it.
Testing a theory, Naruto took a handful of grass that he called Dragon Nip, and used it as he and the other recruits went off against a Gronkle. When the dragon came near Naruto, he took out the grass and rubbed it against the dragon's nose, making it turn over. After another successful flight, Naruto began scratching Toothless' neck and then under the jaw, causing the dragon to fall over. Testing another theory, Naruto did the same thing to a Nadder that he and the recruits were up against. It was a good thing to because Astrid was running towards the dragon with her axe raised and ready to strike.
Things were also improving at the village because when Naruto sat down at a table to eat, everyone in the hall surrounded him and began talking to him. The only one that didn't was Astrid as she slammed her drink down angrily.
When he visited Toothless again, Naruto found that the dragon likes chasing a small patch of light that Naruto was reflecting off of a piece of metal. At the next day of training, everyone was now up against the Terrible Terror, a very small dragon. It attacked Tuffnut but Naruto stopped it by using his shield to reflect the light and attract its attention. Using this, Naruto moved the light and caused the mini dragon to follow it all the way back to its cave.
The next day was a close call to Naruto as he went through the woods towards the cove. The reason was because of Astrid and she was throwing her axe at random trees. When she pulled it out of a tree, she turned and was about to throw it again, but stopped when she saw Naruto walk in the distance. Deciding to follow him, Astrid hid behind a few trees until she saw her fellow blond walk behind a boulder. Thinking she caught him, she climbed the boulder and looked over, only to widen her eyes in shock when she saw no trace of Naruto.
Naruto took Toothless to a high cliff and tied the dragon to a tree stump. Once everything was ready, he climbed on Toothless and they began practicing their flight and how the fin works exactly. Unfortunately, the rope snapped and sent both Toothless and Naruto flying back. Tumbling on the ground a few times, Toothless stood up and Naruto found that the safety line that kept him attached to Toothless was damaged and he could not separate them now.
Knowing that the only way to fix this was to take Toothless to his workshop, Naruto waited until night and lead the dragon through the village. Thankfully there were only a couple of people about. When he reached the workshop, Naruto quickly entered, followed by Toothless who did not fit easily. This caused a lot of noise, and one person heard "Naruto?" knowing that the voice belonged to Astrid, Naruto tried to pry the ring off of the saddles hook, but to no avail. "Are in you there?"
Knowing there was nothing else he could do, Naruto jumped through the window and quickly closed it behind him. "Astrid, hi Astrid" said Naruto, trying and failing to act casual.
"I normally don't care what people do, but you're acting weird," said Astrid before watching Naruto get pulled into the wall behind him "Well, weirder."
"I take offence to that," said Naruto before he felt Toothless move away, lifting him higher into the air. "Well I'm not THAT weird" finished Naruto before being pulled through the window. Shocked by this, Astrid ran to the window and opened it, only to see nothing there. She never noticed Naruto and Toothless run behind her and fly away.
-After the Week-
During the middle of the day, a lone ship entered the village's dock. The ship was damaged and looked like it would sink unless it was fixed. When all the Vikings left the ship, they all had downcast looks as they walked. Stoick was the last to leave the ship and he passed Gobber, who was staring at the ship. "Well, I trust you found the dragon's nest at least."
"Not even close" said Stoick and you could hear the frustration in his voice. Gobber quickly walks up to his to his long-time friend and took his duffel bag, trying to help. "I trust you had more success than I did."
Gobber smiled "Well, yes actually." Shocked by this, Stoick stopped and stared at his friend before other Viking's who stayed in the village passed him and congratulated him.
"You...did it?" asked a bewildered Stoick.
"Yep. Your old son is gone and is now new and improved," said Gobber with pride, believing it was his training. He then scrunched his face up in confusion. "Although he is gone most of the time. Don't know where he goes. But you can't blame him, I mean a life of a celebrity is very rough. He can't even walk around the village without being swarmed by fans." He then chuckled "I remember he came to training one day with parts of his clothing ripped. I asked what happened and all he said was 'Fan-Girls'." Stoick shivered at that, knowing the horrors from experience "I don't know how Naruto does it though, he has this...way with the beasts."
-With Naruto and Toothless-
Naruto couldn't contain his excitement as he and Toothless were slowly flying across the sky, but away from the village so as to not have witnesses. Thankfully they were miles in the air, high above the village, so no one would been able to see them. Now clad in his full leather gear, with a blood red mask that covered the lower part of his face, Naruto looked at the sheet that he placed in front of him, to help remember how to manoeuvre Toothless' mechanical fin. "Alright, Toothless, let's take this nice and slow" said Naruto as he read the sheet. "Ok, position four" he said as he moved his foot, which moved the fin. Toothless shook his head, not really use to flying this way but knew it was important. They both flew and then lightly curved left. Naruto looked around, making sure everything was alright. Seeing that everything was alright, he smirked "Alright, its go time" Moving his foot slightly, Toothless went for dive before levelling off just above the water.
They flew under a large stone arch, just as intended. "Great" said Naruto with a smile "It works!" Distracted from looking back, Toothless lightly slammed into a stone pillar. "Sorry" apologised Naruto before they slammed into another pillar "Damn it!" Annoyed at this, Toothless used his ears and smacked Naruto across the head. "Ow! I said I was sorry!" he shouted back to the dragon. "Position three" he muttered as he moved his foot. Toothless moved and they were both now flying straight up towards the sky. "This is awesome!" shouted Naruto with wide eyes and a large smile. Suddenly, he saw his cheat sheet fly off. "No!" Trying to grab it, his harness came off the hook just as Toothless slowed down. But because of the momentum, Naruto continued to fly up until Toothless finally saw him.
Toothless widened his eyes when he saw Naruto in front of him, instead of on the saddle. He then began to thrash around just as Naruto tried to get back to the saddle "Calm down!" shouted Naruto over the wind, hoping that Toothless would had heard, but sadly not as the dragon's tail whipped his face hard enough for a large cut to appear on his forehead. Seeing an opening with his one good eye, now that his left eye was covered in blood, Naruto manoeuvred himself so that he flew close to the saddle. Finally managing to grab hold of the saddle, Naruto quickly straightened himself out as he reattached his harness. Unfortunately they were still plummeting towards the water as they span in mid-air, so the air current kept pushing the cheat sheet out of the way as Naruto tried to read it. Seeing that it was too late for that, Naruto decided to let it go as he instinctively moved his foot so he could move the fin. It worked as they straightened themselves out and then manoeuvred them throughout all the rock pillars and archways that they passed earlier.
After a few close calls, they made it past, and both sighed in relief. "Thank god that's over" muttered Naruto, not noticed a glimmer of mischievousness appear in Toothless' eyes before the dragon blew fireball ahead of them. "...Damn it" muttered Naruto, when he saw the fire.
A half hour later, both Naruto and Toothless were resting on a beach. With his mask down, Naruto was now cooking a couple of fishes. You could clearly see the soot on his face and in his hair. The cut that was on his head finally stopped bleeding and Naruto was careful to wash it because of the soot. Hearing Toothless make a weird noise, Naruto look and saw the dragon regurgitate a fish head. Chuckling in an awkward manner, Naruto spoke "No, I'm alright, thanks." Hearing another noise, Naruto looked ahead and saw several Terrible Terror's appear and land in front of him. He tensed and he idly noticed that Toothless was growling. Watching, Naruto saw one of the dragons snatch the fish's head and then fight over it with another. He then saw a fish move on its own in the pile next to Toothless before said dragon snatched it away from the tiny dragon.
Winning the small tug of war easily, Toothless ate the fish and actually chuckled at the Terrible Terror's expense. In retaliation, the tiny dragon prepared a fireball but as soon as it opened its mouth, Toothless blew a small one inside of it, making the gas inside of the dragon ignite and backfire. Smoke coming out of the little one, the dragon staggered away in a painful daze. Chuckling, Naruto grabbed one of his cooked fish and tossed it to the downed dragon "So you're not fireproof inside" he said. Happily eating the fish, the tiny Terror cautiously approached Naruto before going under his arm and curling up to sleep. "Everything we now about you guy's is wrong" said Naruto in amazement.
-That Night-
Naruto sat bored at his desk, going over what happened in the past couple of weeks. As he was distracted, he never noticed his father come into the room until he heard a noise. Turning and seeing his father, Naruto literally jumped up and swiped every drawing of Toothless from his desk onto the floor. "Dad!" shouted Naruto, trying to act casual as he lent against his desk "When did you get back?"
"Not too long ago" said Stoick as he took his helmet off "I came straight here to see you."
"Me?" asked Naruto in confusion.
"You've been keeping secrets," stated Stoick in a stern manner.
'Does he know?' thought Naruto in slight panic, as a small amount of sweat dripped from his forehead. 'He can't possibly know! No one but me knows of Toothless!'
However, all of Naruto's hopes were dashed with Stoick's next sentence: "Just how long did you think you could keep it from me?"
'HE KNOWS! I AM SO SCREWED!' thought Naruto as he tried to come up with an excuse "I don't know what you're-"
He was interrupted though. "Nothing happens on this island without me hearing about it" He then stepped closer to his son "So, let's talk about that dragon." If it was possible, Naruto managed to grow even more pale the second Stoick mention dragon. As he tried to come up with an excuse, Stoick just burst out laughing, scaring Naruto, as it was a loud and booming laugh "I was hoping for this!"
"...What?" asked Naruto dumbly as he was highly confused at what was happening 'Are we talking about the same thing?'
"And it will only get better!" continued Stoick in an excited manner "Just wait until you spill a Nadder's guts for the first time! And mount your first Gronkle on a spear! What a feeling!" shouted Stoick as he clapped Naruto's back, jerking the seventeen year old a little.
'I knew it' thought Naruto with a slightly relieved but still worried expression.
"You really had me going there son" Stoick said as he laughed a little. "All those years of the strangest Viking Berk has ever seen! Odin, it was rough, I almost gave up on you. All the while you were holding out me! Thor almighty!" Grabbing a stool that was nearby, Stoick sat down on it, his massive frame was still filling the room. "With you doing so well, we now have something to talk about" he finished with a large smile. Unfortunately it was very awkward at the next moment because neither knew what to say. After a minute of silence, Stoick coughed to break it "I, uh, brought you something" he said as he showed a Viking helmet "To keep you safe in the ring."
Naruto took the helmet and smiled. "Wow" he said "Thank you." He then put it on his head, still wearing his smile.
"Your mother would have wanted you to have it," said Stoick with a gentle smile "It was half her breast plate." At this, Naruto's eyes widened slightly as he took the helmet off his head. He grimaced slightly but managed to put on a smiled anyway. Stoick then tapped his own helmet that Naruto noticed was the exact same as the one in his hands. "Matching set. So as to keep her close." He then stood up and ruffled Naruto's hair. "Wear it proudly. You deserve it after all, you kept up your end of the bargain." Naruto just smiled at his father, although inside he was more worried than ever.
-The Next Day, Training Grounds-
Naruto was not happy right now. He knew that whoever did the best in today's training, would be the winner and slay their first dragon. So as he stayed behind a barrier, he watched as a Gronkle flew about the training ground. What didn't help was that nearly everyone in Berk was here to watch, including Stoick. As he tried to think of ways to get out of this situation, Astrid appeared beside him. She seemed surprised to see him before settling to a glare as she pushed his axe down. "Stay out of my way" she ordered, which sounded more like a threat "I'm winning this thing."
"Please, by all means" said Naruto, which made Astrid confused before she shook her head and ran off towards the Gronkle, hiding behind barriers to stay out of the dragon's sight. Naruto just stood and lent against the barrier he was at as he looked towards his father who gave him a nod of encouragement.
Astrid ran from barrier to barrier as she hid from the Gronkle. As she hid behind the last barrier, she took a few deep breaths as she told herself "This time" in a whisper, "This time for sure." Taking one last deep breath, Astrid jumped over her barrier with her axe raised. She released a battle-cry but stopped and dropped her axe in shock. In front of her stood Naruto with a downed Gronkle at his feet. Naruto just looked at the blond girl and shrugged. "No!" shouted Astrid as she started winging her axe about "No! No! Son of a Halftroll eating munge bucket!"
A loud clank was heard by everyone as they all went silent. Everyone looked and saw Gothi, the village elder, stepped forward. The crowd seemed to light up excitedly and Stoick tried to calm them down. "Well" spoke Naruto "I'm leaving" He tried to leave before Gobber used his hook to get the back of Naruto's hood. "Hey, I need to-"
He was interrupted as Astrid, the second Naruto was put back on his feet, pointed her axe at Naruto. "What?!" she shouted, extremely angry "What do you need to do?!"
Stoick then raised his hand, silencing everyone. "The Elder has decided" he said as Gobber went between the two teens. Once the Elder was next to the training grounds cage, Gobber raised his hooked hand above Astrid. The crowd watched with bated breath before the Elder shook her head, drawing gasps from the crowd. Gobber then raised his hand above Naruto, making the Gothi nod with a smile. The crowd erupted into cheers. Everyone but two were happy. Astrid was seen glaring at Naruto, and Naruto was frowning, but no one could see it because of his mask.
Suddenly, Naruto was hoisted up onto the other recruits shoulders, making the crowd cheer even more. Naruto just started to wave his hand to keep up appearances as he thought about the consequences that will no doubt occur.
-Later that day, in the Cove-
"Toothless!" called Naruto as he was seen with a basket full of fish "Come on! We are leaving!" Toothless was nowhere to be seen as Naruto set his basket down. He was about to open it and give it to Toothless so that the Night Fury would come out of hiding, until he heard a sound that all too familiar to Naruto. It was the sound of a weapon being sharpened. Naruto snapped his head up and widened his eyes when he saw Astrid sitting on a boulder right in front of him and sharpening her axe "Astrid" he whispered before letting his hand hover over his hidden dagger "What are you doing here?" he asked, preparing himself in case there would be a fight.
"I want to know want's going on" she said as she jumped down from the boulder "No one just gets as good as you do, especially you." As she talked, she walked up to Naruto and then circled around him.
Naruto's right eye was now twitching 'That was really insulting' he thought.
"Start talking!" she ordered "Are you training with someone?"
"I always train by myself" he said.
She then grabbed him by one of his shoulder pads "It better not involve any of this." As soon as she said that, a rustle was heard from the other side of the cove. Getting suspicious, Astrid let go of Naruto and set off to investigate.
Naruto just sighed "Toothless, you might as well come out! She'll find you eventually!" he shouted, seeing no point in hiding it anymore. Astrid turned to Naruto, tired of him being an idiot as she raised her axe in a threatening manner.
Naruto just sighed as he heard the dragon growl from where he was. Astrid turned towards the noise and widened her eyes in fear as she saw a dragon she had never seen before. "Get down!" she shouted, pushing Naruto down to the ground. Toothless saw this and roared as he ran out from where he was to help his friend.
Astrid quickly got back up and raised her axe when she saw the dragon charge at her, but Naruto was quick as he got up as well and picked Astrid up in a bridal carry, and then jumped over the charging Toothless whilst flipping forward. Once he landed back on the ground, he quickly put Astrid back on her feet, not noticing her blushing face, and put his hands up to stop both Toothless and Astrid from attacking each other. "Stop!" shouted Naruto, making Toothless actually grind to a halt. The dragon may have stopped, but he still glared at Astrid whilst giving Naruto a questioning gaze. "She's a friend" said Naruto, earning a snort from the dragon "Well she's sort of a friend." Naruto then turned to the stunned and highly confused Astrid "You just scared him."
"I scared him?!" screeched Astrid, making Naruto suddenly think of a pink haired girl for some reason "Who is 'him'?" asked Astrid after taking a deep breath.
"Astrid, Toothless" said Naruto, greeting the girl to the dragon "Toothless, Astrid" he said, introducing the dragon to the girl. Toothless just continued to glare at Astrid before snarling, scaring the girl some more. Astrid just looked between the two some more with disgust before running away back towards Berk. Naruto sighed as Toothless now looked on with a bored expression. "Great" said Naruto with sarcasm "She's going to tell everyone." Toothless just grunted before walked off. "Hey! Where do you think you're going?" questioned Naruto, going after the dragon.
-With Astrid-
Astrid continued to race through the forest towards Berk. She hopped off a log and was suddenly snatched into the air. She screamed in fear as she was brought higher and higher into the air. "Oh great Odin's Ghost! This is it!" she shouted before screaming and clutching at what grabbed her. She was then brought to a tree. Once placed on the highest branch, Astrid looked and saw Naruto and Toothless land on the top branch, bending the tree they were on. "Naruto!" she shouted in anger, although the panic and fear was easily heard "Get me DOWN from here!"
"Am I allowed to explain?" asked Naruto with an amused expression, already knowing what the answer will be. Astrid couldn't see his expression though because his mask was up again but his hood was down.
"I am not listening to anything you have to say!" she shouted back at the dragon Rider.
Naruto rolled his eyes before outstretching his hand to her "Then can I show you? Please?" he asked.
Astrid was about to shout until she heard the tree creak some more. Hesitantly, she looked down before looking back up right away. After a moment, she slowly climbed up the branch and towards the duo before swatting Naruto's hand away and climbing on the saddle, ignoring Toothless growling. Once she was on, she moved a little and balanced herself so that she wouldn't so much as touch Naruto. "Now" she spoke "Get me down!"
Naruto sighed. "Toothless, down gently please" he said before noticing a glint of mischievous appear in the dragon's eyes "Oh that's not good."
"What's not good?" Astrid asked and was suddenly thrown back as Toothless shoots off into the air. Screaming, Astrid never realised that she wrapped her arms and legs around Naruto as they flew higher and higher.
Now having more difficulty breathing, Naruto shouted to Toothless "The hell are you doing?!" Then Toothless dove down towards the water that was miles below them at incredible speeds. Once near the water, Toothless levelled off but still crashed into multiple waves lightly so that the water's froth would soak them all. Toothless then started flying upwards before spinning, scaring Astrid even more. "And now he's spinning" commented Naruto as Toothless dove back towards the water whilst still spinning. "You're being such a great help, you useless reptile."
Being scared out of her mind, Astrid couldn't take anymore as she began to scream. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Just get me down from this thing" she finished off quietly as her head was tucked in Naruto's neck. Toothless heard the apology and quickly levelled off before gliding softly in the air. He then gently rose into the air before going above the clouds. Astrid slowly opened her eyes and gasped lightly when she saw that they were high above the clouds. Hesitantly, she raised her hand and touch a cloud, leaving a small trail. A smile appeared on her face as she raised both her hands. Rising even more, Toothless rose above the clouds even higher and they all appeared in a night sky. It just so happened that as they flew, the Northern Lights appeared. As they flew, Toothless soared over Berk, making the teens smile when they saw their home lit from the village lights, creating a breath taking view. Without realising, Astrid wrapped her arms around Naruto and burrowed her chin into his shoulder, making them both smile. Toothless then flew past Berk, leaving the village lights behind them. "Alright" spoke Astrid with a smile "I'll admit it. This is pretty cool. It's...amazing." Astrid then smiled down at the dragon they were on and patted his side a little "He's amazing."
Naruto smiled at the girl behind him, even though she couldn't see the smile "Yes he is" he said.
After a minute or two, Astrid spoke again "So what now?" she asked.
Naruto didn't have to ask to know what she was talking about. He shook his head as a response "I don't know."
"Naruto" spoke Astrid "Your final exam is tomorrow. You know you are going to have to kill..." she hesitated as she glanced at Toothless before whispering in Naruto's ear "...Kill a dragon."
"I know" said Naruto with a groan and a sigh "And I can't think of any way to get out of it without revealing Toothless" he said, not noticing that Toothless' ear plates were moving about erratically. Suddenly, Toothless dove down into the clouds, frightening Naruto and Astrid a little. "Toothless" spoke Naruto "What's happening?" Toothless then barks at them, making Naruto realise that he wanted them quiet. Just as he was about to say something, he hears another dragon approach to his right. "Get down!" he whispered loudly to Astrid as they both leaned forward to stay more out of sight. Looking, they saw a Monstrous Nightmare appear on their right.
"What's happening?" asked Astrid, getting more scared by the second and Naruto couldn't blame her. Suddenly a Zippleback appears to their left, effectively boxing them in.
"I don't know" whispered Naruto. "Toothless" he whispered to his dragon "You have to get us out of here!" Toothless just hissed back at them, trying to keep them quiet. More dragons were heard as they flew. Looking, both Naruto and Astrid saw hundreds of dragon's fly around them, all heading in the same direction. Looking more closely, Naruto saw that each dragon was carrying some animals. "I think they're hauling in their kill."
Hearing this, Astrid asked "What does that make us?"
"I'd rather not think about that" spoke back Naruto just as every dragon dove more towards the water. Astrid held on tighter and tried to scream when they flew too close to some stone pillars. Eventually they all came across an island with a volcano on it, with lava flowing on random parts of the mountain. They flew closer and closer to the volcano until they came across a cave in the side of the volcano which leads to a tunnel that every dragon was using. Not long after, they appeared in a massive cavern with the bottom being covered by smoke so they couldn't see past it, except for the glowing that made them realise there was lava at the bottom. "What my Dad wouldn't give to find this" muttered Naruto as Toothless flew to the side and landed on a small dark shelf, that was hard to see, trying to stay hidden.
Both Naruto and Astrid watched as all the hauled food was dropped so that it would all go to the bottom of the volcano. "They're not eating any of it" pointed out Astrid in a whisper. They watched as the last of the food was dumped before a Gronkle appeared, floating over the pit of lava. Even from where they were, Naruto and Astrid could tell the Gronkle was not exactly smart as it regurgitated a fishes head. It then scratched its ear before stopping as a massive roar resounded through the cavern. Suddenly, a massive dragon dove up from the cavern's pit and ate the Gronkle, making Naruto and Astrid gasp at the sheer size of the dragon.
Every dragon seemed to back away in fear of the dragon as its head stayed above the smoke "We have to get out of here" said Naruto to Toothless when he saw the massive dragon sniff the air. It was a good thing too because as soon as Toothless flew away, the gargantuan dragon jumped at where they were. All the dragons fled and Toothless followed after, trying to keep his rider and friend safe.
After a while, Toothless landed back in the cove and let both Naruto and Astrid down. "No, no" she said, voicing her theory of what they just saw. "It totally makes sense. It's like a giant beehive. The dragons are the workers and that thing was the queen. It control's them." Once she said that, she said something that made Naruto panic slightly "We have to tell your Dad!"
"No!" shouted Naruto, making Astrid jump at the unexpected noise "We cannot tell anyone about this." Seeing the questioning look, Naruto explained as he took his mask off. "If we tell them about the nest and how we found out, then they'll kill Toothless and I will not let that happen." Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Naruto continued "We have to think this through carefully."
"Naruto" said Astrid, getting his attention "We just discovered the dragon's Nest - the thing we've been after since Vikings first sailed here. And you want to keep it a secret? To protect your pet dragon? Are you serious?"
Astrid would have said more if Naruto had not turned around. She widened her eyes when she saw his eyes. They were full of determination "Yes" he said with nothing but conviction.
After a few seconds, Astrid sighed "Ok. But what are we going to do?"
Thinking for a moment, Naruto answered "Just give me until tomorrow. I'll figure something out"
They both stayed silent for a moment before Astrid suddenly punched Naruto in the arm "That was for kidnapping me" she explained as Naruto looked at Toothless, who just scoffed and continued drinking water. Looking back at Astrid, his eyes widened when she grabbed his arm and kissed his cheek, causing them both to blush immensely. "T-That...was for everything else" she stuttered before running away back to Berk.
Naruto stared after Astrid, not knowing what to say as his jaw was almost unhinged. Toothless walked up to Naruto and gave him a look. "What are you looking at?" asked Naruto once he found his voice.
-The Next Day, at the Training Grounds-
Almost all of Berk were at the training ground, excited to see the son of Stoick slay a dragon. The entire arena was filled with flags and banners as everyone cheered when Stoick appeared. "Well!" he shouted over the roaring crowd "I'm glad I can show my face in public again!" The crowd laughed along with Stoick before he quieted them. "If someone had told me that in a few short weeks, Naruto would go from being, well...Naruto, to placing first in the dragon Training, I would have tied him to a mast and shipped him off for fear he'd gone mad! And you know it! But here we are! And no one is more surprised and proud than I am! Today, my boy becomes a VIKING!" He roared the last word and the crowd cheered.
Down in the training arena, Naruto stood at the gate, not looking worried in the slightest. "Be careful with that dragon" he heard. Turning, he saw Astrid standing there with a smile of reassurance.
He chuckled "It's not the dragon I'm worried about" he said, nodding towards is father.
"What are you going to do?"
Naruto looked at Astrid and smiled, making her unknowingly blush slightly "I'm going to end this" he said whilst putting his mask up. He seemed to hesitate before taking her hand and making her blush more "If something goes wrong, make sure that they do not find Toothless."
"I will" replied Astrid as she squeezed his hand slightly "Just promise me it won't go wrong."
Noticing that Gobber was coming, Naruto quickly said "I promise."
"It's time. Make sure to knock it dead" he said to the boy, not noticing as the two quickly let go of the other's hand.
Naruto just sighed as he put on the helmet that his father gave him. He entered the ring and the crowd seemed to cheer even more as soon as they saw him "Show 'em how it's done, my man!" shouted Stoick, gaining his son's attention as the two locked eyes. Stoick nodded and Naruto went to where the weapons were. He went there and took a shield and an average sword that was made for someone of his size. "I would have gone for the hammer" muttered Stoick to Gobber, who nodded in agreement.
Naruto then went back towards the centre of the arena and stared at the large bolted door that contained the dragon that he was to slay. "I'm ready" The bolt to the door was lifted and the heavy doors burst open in a blaze of fire as a Monstrous Nightmare jumps out. Its entire body was covered in flames as it runs around the arena and its walls. It even blast a fireball through the cage but the crowd easily avoided the attack as it went flying towards the water. It then climbed to the top of the cage, as the flames surrounding its body dissipated, before looking straight at Naruto. It went to the ground and approached Naruto, who calmly looked back but took steps away in case the dragon attacked. Suddenly, to everyone but Astrid's confusion, Naruto let go of his shield and sword, making them clatter on the ground. The dragon continued to advance but Naruto put his hands out to show he would not attack.
"What is he doing?" muttered Stoick, not liking what is happening.
"It's alright" said Naruto to the dragon before looking straight at his father and took off his helmet. "I'm not one of them" he said as he threw the helmet to the ground, causing everyone to gasp in shock. He then outstretched his hand towards the dragon, looking between the dragon and his father.
Angered by what has happened, Stoick said "Stop the fight."
"No!" shouted Naruto in a calm way "I need all of you to see this! They are not what we think they are!" What he said next, outraged Stoick completely "We don't have to kill them!"
Quickly getting up, Stoick roared "I SAID STOP THE FIGHT!" He then banged his hammer against the arena's iron cage, causing a massive noise to resound inside of it, spooking the Monstrous Nightmare that was about to accept Naruto. Its eyes narrowed before snapping at Naruto, who quickly jumped out of the way. It then blasted a stream of fire that Naruto barely avoided "Out of my way!" shouted Stoick as he pushed past the crowd.
"Naruto!" shouted Astrid before taking an axe off the wall and hoisting the cage up, just enough to allow her through. Naruto ran to the weapon's rack and was about to grab something before the dragon destroyed it with another burst of flames. Stoick reached the gates to the arena before throwing it open.
In a desperate attempt to help, Astrid picked up a hammer and threw it at the dragon, hitting its nose. Now, its attention was on Astrid as it chased after her. Stoick got to the second gate and lifted it open just as Astrid reached him. Naruto was about to follow after, at least until the Nightmare launched another fireball dead ahead of him, and blocking his path. Unfortunately, Naruto was not expecting this and fell down in shock. The Monstrous Nightmare then pounced on him, trapping him with its claws. The crowd had no idea what to do and neither did Stoick or Astrid. As they waited, a sound caught their attention that made them fear for their lives. "Night Fury! Get down!" someone shouted as everyone ducked down.
Toothless jumped over the crowd and blasted open the arena's cage, creating a massive smoke cloud that blocked everyone's view of the dragon jumped in. No one could see anything but they could hear both dragon's roar at each other. The smoke soon dissipated to show Naruto standing behind Toothless as he roared at the Nightmare, scaring it into the wall. Toothless roars one more time and the crowd grow shocked and livid when they saw Naruto move in front of the dragon and throw his arms out, protecting it. "Toothless, you need to get out of here!" said Naruto, watching the crowd carefully, knowing that this will turn ugly.
"Night Fury!" shouted a Viking before everyone climbed into the arena, one way or another, and started to attack Toothless. "Take it alive!" one shouted as Stoick took an axe off the wall next to him and entered the arena himself. He charged at Toothless. "Dad, no!" shouted Naruto in vain as Toothless lunged at the large chief. They both scuffled a little before Toothless prepared to fire an attack before Naruto shouted "NO!" which stopped the Night Fury. Toothless looked at Naruto before a Viking hit the dragon with a hammer. Another tackled Toothless and held his head to the ground "Don't you dare hurt him!" shouted Naruto as Astrid held Naruto back for his safety.
Stoick stood up and glared at Toothless and snarled out "Put it with the others." He then turned his glare onto his son, not believing what has happened. He grabbed Naruto by his robe and left, not saying anything to anyone. After a few minutes, he entered the Great Hall and shoved Naruto in front of him before slamming the massive door shut. "I should have known" he muttered "I should have seen the signs."
"Dad-" started Naruto before Stoick glared at him again.
"We had a deal!" shouted Stoick in anger
"I know we did! But if you would let me explain-" Naruto was once again interrupted.
Stoick spoke in an angry and disbelieving tone "So everything in the ring, a trick? A lie?"
Naruto took a deep breath to calm himself "I know I messed up and that I should have told you. Take this out on me, be mad at me, but please don't do anything to Toothless" Naruto all but begged.
Hearing this, Stoick stopped and looked shocked and disbelieving at his son. "That's what you're worried about? The dragon? Not the people that you almost killed?!"
"He was protecting me!" shouted Naruto in defiance.
"They've killed hundreds of us!"
Having enough of this, Naruto roared at his father: "And we've killed THOUSANDS of them! All they do is defend themselves! They are forced to kill and steal from us because if they don't, then they will be eaten themselves!" he shouted with rage in his voice "There is something else at their island, Dad, they-"
"Their island?" repeated Stoick as he interrupted his son. Turning, he stomped towards his son "How did you find it?" Naruto didn't say anything, causing Stoick to punch the wall he was next to. When his fist made contact with the wall, it caused spider cracks to appear "Where?!"
Naruto didn't even flinch as his father tried to frighten him. Knowing he couldn't win, he answered "Only a dragon can find the nest." Stoick stared at Naruto until an idea appeared on his face. "Don't go there" pleaded Naruto "There is a dragon there that you have never seen before and it will kill you and anyone else you take with you." Stoick didn't show any signs that he heard Naruto as he walked towards the doors of the hall. In a desperate attempt to stop him, Naruto grabbed Stoick's arm "Please! I promise you that you will not win this one!" Still nothing. Tugging even harder, Naruto managed to turn his father slightly as he shouted "WOULD YOU PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!"
Having enough of this, Stoick threw Naruto off of him and onto the ground. They both stared at each other, Naruto with a stunned and hurt look, and Stoick with a callous look "You've thrown your lot in with them" spoke Stoick with no emotion "You're not a Viking" He stopped before looking away from Naruto's gaze "You're not my son"
He then left the hall, not daring to look back at Naruto who had a devastated look.
-Next Morning-
At the docks, almost every Viking on Berk were setting up the ships. "Ready the ships!" ordered Stoick as he entered the largest one. He watched as many items were loaded onto the ship. Lastly, Toothless was loaded aboard Stoick's ship, chained down to a palette, muzzled, and restrained with a weighty neck ring. Stoick smirked when his gaze went to the dragon before looking off into the horizon. "Set sail!" he ordered all other Vikings, "We head for Helheim's Gate!" Suddenly, he looked towards the cliffs near the docks of Berk, seeing his son at the top with his hood down but his mask up. Both stared at each other from a distance before Stoick broke off and glared at Toothless. He walked towards the dragon and ordered harshly "Lead us home, devil." Naruto just stood on top of the hill, not knowing what to do as he watched each ship sail away from the village.
Naruto stayed on top of the hill for hours on end. He didn't even realise how long he was there until he heard someone approach from behind him. Even then he didn't turn, somehow knowing that it was Astrid. "It's a mess" she commented, but Naruto didn't reply or bother looking. "You must feel horrible. You've lost everything" she continued, but then stopped herself when she saw Naruto's hand make a fist and shake lightly.
"Why couldn't I have just killed that dragon when I found him in the woods" Naruto said after a minute, unclenching his hand and looking towards the sky, "It would have been better for everyone."
"Yep" stated Astrid in agreement, seemingly in a nonchalant manner "The rest of us would have done it." She then walked forward and stood next to the teen "So why didn't you?" Naruto just shook his head as he looked down to the ground. "Why didn't you?" Astrid asked again.
Naruto still didn't look up "I don't know" he admitted "I couldn't."
Not satisfied with the answer, Astrid stated "That's not an answer."
Beginning to get annoyed by the questions, Naruto turned to look at Astrid and threw his mask down "Why is this so important to you all of a sudden?!" he asked loudly.
Astrid held a small smiled that Naruto seemed to miss "Because I want to remember what you say right now."
Having enough of this, Naruto practically exploded as he shouted "I was a coward! I was weak! I wouldn't kill a dragon!"
Hearing this, Astrid stated "You said 'wouldn't' that time."
"Whatever!" shouted back Naruto, not caring about the difference in what he said "I wouldn't! Three hundred years and I'm the first Viking who wouldn't kill a dragon!"
After that, both became silent, neither saying anything. But after a minute, Astrid said "First one to ride one though." Naruto's eyes widened at this, never having thought of that. "So…" encouraged Astrid.
"I wouldn't kill him because he looked as frightened as I was" admitted Naruto, in a quiet tone, looking down at the ground again "I looked him in the eyes, and I saw myself."
Astrid smiled at that before looking out towards the ocean. "I bet he's really frightened now" she said, drawing Naruto's attention, "What are you going to do about it?"
Naruto thought for a moment before smiling lightly and looking at Astrid. "Probably something stupid" was his answer.
"Good" said Astrid with a nod "But you've done that already."
Looking at Astrid, Naruto's eyes shown with determination. "Then something impossible" he said without hesitation.
Later that day, Naruto was found in the training grounds, preparing to open up the door to the Monstrous Nightmare. Before he could do that though, he heard footsteps behind him. Looking, he saw all the other recruits there as Fishlegs spoke "If you're planning on getting eaten, then I'd definitely go with the Gronkle."
Naruto stared at everyone there as Tuffnut went up to him with a serious look. "You were wise to seek out this world's deadliest weapon" he said. Everyone was silent, as Naruto just gave him a deadpan stare "It's me" finished Tuffnut.
"Yeah, I figured that's what you meant" said Naruto.
He then watched as Snotlout pushed Tuffnut out of the way "I love this plan!" he explained, trying to impress Astrid, but it didn't work.
Ruffnut then pushed the boy out of the way. "You're crazy" she said with a sneer before giving Naruto a look whilst speaking in a sultry tone "I like that" she whispered.
Seeing this, Astrid became angry for some reason and quickly pushed the girl away. "So, what's the plan?" she asked, trying to forget what she just did.
Naruto smiles as his friends began to support him in his time of need. "We need to get that door open" he said, pointing to the barricaded door behind him. The recruit's glances and a couple were hesitant now because they knew that was the Monstrous Nightmare. But they shook off their fear and helped Naruto open the door, before watching in amazement as the large red dragon slowly came out as it stared at Naruto's palm with calmness.
Out of fear, Snotlout tried to get the spear that was lying next to him, but Astrid placed her foot over it whilst shaking her head, telling him that was not a good idea. Naruto finally reached the other teens before taking a hold of Snotlout's wrist and bringing it closer to the Nightmare. "W-Wait! What are you doing?!" he whispered in a loud tone, not wanting to scare the dragon into killing him.
Naruto shushed him with a knowing smile. "It's alright" he said, calming Snotlout down a bit.
Putting Snotlout's hand onto the nose of the Nightmare, the dragon snorted before leaning into it a little bit more, causing Snotlout to chuckle in a really nervous tone but you could easily tell that he was incredibly amazed by this. Naruto took a step away, catching his friends attention. "Where are you going?" asked Snotlout, not sure what to do.
Naruto ran over to the supply box and took out a pile of rope. "You're all going to need this to help hold on." The recruits looked at each other before hearing a noise. Looking, they all saw all the other dragon's sitting and waiting. Everyone chose their own dragon, and were then tied to their respective dragon. Snotlout, of course, got the Monstrous Nightmare, Fishlegs's got the Gronkle, Ruffnut and Tuffnut both got the Zippleback, and Astrid got the Nadder. Once everyone was ready, they tried to fly off. Key word being tried. Naruto laughed lightly as he lent against the wall, watching the other recruits struggle to stay on their dragons. The only one that seemed to be doing the best, was Astrid, unsurprisingly.
It took nearly an entire hour but they eventually managed to get good enough to stay on the dragon as they flew. Once they were ready, Naruto got on the Nadder with Astrid sitting behind him with her arms around his waist. They all flew into the skies, with the recruits shouting their excitement, but both Naruto and Astrid stayed quiet, with Naruto having his mask up. After a while, Astrid leaned closer so Naruto could hear her "What are we going to do about that giant dragon?"
Naruto said nothing as he glanced at the recruits. He knew he had to plan carefully otherwise they would all be dead. "I don't really know" admitted Naruto after a minute of thinking. "I think we should at least get everyone away from that dragon, Red Death" he said, giving that monstrous dragon a name that fit. "Then, you and the others try and distract it as I find Toothless."
Astrid nodded before falling silent. She gently stroked the sides of the Nadder they were on, and smiled when she heard the dragon make a purr like noise. "You know, it's a weird" she said, catching Naruto's attention "Just the other day, I did everything I could so that I could kill a dragon for Berk and become a Viking. But now I'm riding a dragon to help save another and all the other Vikings."
Naruto chuckled at that along with Astrid as she laughed along. "Yeah, it's is weird to think about. But...it just seems right to me" he said "To fly with a dragon." He then glanced over his shoulder, finally noticing that Astrid was resting her chin on him. "So what are you going to name her?" he asked, nodding towards the Nadder they were on.
Surprised by the question, Astrid thought for a moment. She honestly didn't know what to call the dragon. As she thought about it, they flew past a cloud that suddenly struck some lightning, making everyone look at it in amazement. "A storm" muttered Astrid before widening her eyes and smiling "Stormfly" she said "I'll name her Stormfly."
The Nadder roared at the name, seemingly liking it. "I think she likes it" commented Naruto with a smile before it turned into a frown. Looking ahead, everyone saw an island in the distance and could see some Viking ships on fire. "Were here!" shouted Naruto, making everyone nod. "Listen! There is a massive dragon there and it will be impossible for us to defeat it! So, I want you to divert its attention whilst making sure avoid its attacks!"
"Is that it?!" shouted Snotlout, pointing down at the island. Looking down, Naruto and everyone saw a giant dragon on the side of the mountain, and they could easily tell that it was taller than any of the ships there.
"Yeah!" shouted back Naruto "When I say, I want you all to fire at it!" Everyone nodded and prepared as they flew down, gaining speed as they flew towards the island. When they got close enough, Naruto shouted "NOW!" and the dragons they were riding suddenly blasted fire at the Red Death, making it cancel its own attack that it had prepared. "Ruffnut, Tuffnut, watch your back! Fishlegs, move!" ordered Naruto, acting as their leader. Looking down at the ground, Naruto noticed his father and Gobber standing next to each other, both gobsmacked at what they are seeing. Circling around the dragon, Naruto shouted "Fishlegs, break it down!"
Nodding, the larger boy let his eyes scan over the Red Death for a few moments. "Heavily armoured skin, and tail made for bashing and crushing! Stay clear of both" he shouted to the others "Small eyes and large nostrils, means he relies heavily on hearing and smell!"
Naruto nodded "Alright, Snotlout, Fishlegs, find its blind spot! Make some noise and confuse it!" The two nodded and flew off. "Ruffnut and Tuffnut, find out if it has a shot limit, make it mad!"
"That's my specialty!" shouted Ruffnut with pride.
Naruto ignored the squabbling twins as he and Astrid flew over some of the ships wreckage to find Toothless. Astrid gasped behind him and pointed "There he is!" Looking, he saw Toothless struggling to break free from his bindings.
Steering towards a safe spot, Naruto jumped off and said to Astrid "Go and help the others." She nodded and was about to leave before Naruto grabbed her hand, causing her to blush lightly for some reason. "Be careful" he said with concern.
"I will" replied Astrid with a smile as she squeezed his hand before flying off. Once she flew away, Naruto bounded over a few debris and managed to get to Toothless. He hurried as he got the muzzle off of the dragon, allowing it to roar out in alarm. "Now let's get you loose" muttered Naruto to Toothless as he began to pull on the heavy chains. He tugged on the chains but they would not budge no matter what. Glancing up, he saw his friends struggle against the giant dragon as it was right next to the ships now. The Red Death lifted up a foot and slammed it down to the ground, causing the ship that Naruto and Toothless were to suddenly get thrown deep under water. Because he didn't have time to gasp for air, Naruto struggled even more, feeling his strength leave him as his vision became blurry. Just as he was going to tug on the chains one last time, a large hand appears out of nowhere and grabs Naruto, before swimming up to the shore. Naruto watched in fear as he saw Toothless sink.
Emerging on the shore, Naruto gasped for breath and glanced at the person who saved him, shocked to see his father diving back into the water. Naruto watched the water for a moment but nothing happened. He got up and ran to the water just as something jumped out and onto the shore. Looking, he saw Toothless and Stoick gasping for air. Toothless then roars and snorts at Naruto, as if telling him to get on. Naruto nodded with a smirk and got onto the saddle whilst hooking himself in. Stoick grabbed onto him and looked unsure of what to say. "Naruto" he began, "I'm...sorry...for everything."
Naruto smiled as he pulled down his mask "I know Dad, I'm sorry too."
"You don't have to go up there" pleaded Stoick, not wanting to lose his son again.
Chuckling, Naruto spoke "Were Vikings, it's an occupational hazard." Stoick chuckled at that, completely agreeing.
Smiling in pride for his son, Stoick said "I am proud to call you my son." Naruto nodded before pulling up his mask and hood. He looked at the Red Death with determination as Toothless shot off into the air at high speeds.
-With Astrid and Stormfly-
Astrid watched as the twins manage to catch Snotlout, not noticing that the Red Death was preparing an attack right behind her. She finally noticed when, Stormfly cried out and that they were losing control of their flight because the Red Death was breathing in. Everyone watched and knew she wouldn't be able to fight it before hearing a sound that brought even more fear into their hearts.. "Night Fury!" shouted a Viking as they all ducked.
No one expected for a massive attack managing to hit the Red Death dead on the face, forcing it to cancel its own attack and throwing Astrid and Stormfly away. The Nadder managed to correct itself in the air but was unable to reach Astrid. Getting closer and closer to the ground, Astrid prepared for the oncoming pain and possible death before being suddenly jerked forward and having a feeling a warmth surround her. Daring to open her eyes, Astrid looked and stared when she realised it was Naruto who saved her by catching her in a bridal carry, causing her to blush. "I thought I asked you to be safe" he cheekily said. He then had Toothless do a barrel roll close to the ground before lifting Astrid off, as they were upside down, and onto the ground.
"Go" said Astrid in a breathless voice, putting all of her faith in Naruto, as she stood on the ground.
Flying towards the Red Death, Naruto and Toothless shot past the behemoth and into the sky "That thing has wings, let's see if it can use them!" he shouted to Toothless before both dived back and plummeted towards the Red Death, gaining tremendous speed. Using their momentum at the final moment, Toothless unloads a large fireball and hit the Red Death, causing it to fall over, showing just how strong Naruto and Toothless's attack was. Flying higher, Naruto looked back but couldn't see anything as the attack caused a large dust cloud to appear and obscure everyone's sight. But after a tense moment, Naruto's eyes widened when he saw the Red Death begin to fly and emerge from the cloud towards him and Toothless. "Well it can fly. But we have to slow it down somehow" muttered Naruto before getting an idea as he looked towards the side of the island that held many sea stacks. Flying towards it, Naruto noticed the Red Death was following with the intent to kill. He and Toothless weaved through the rock formations with ease but the giant dragon behind them just smashed through them all, trying to kill them. Seeing that the plan was working, Naruto looked at Toothless. "Let's disappear" he said, nodding towards the clouds.
Understanding, Toothless flew down a bit to gain speed before shooting towards the sky. Naruto held on but listened as his friends encouraged him. They flew into the clouds, with the Red Death still following until they were all in the clouds. In the clouds, the Red Death breathed in before firing off a massive fireball that Naruto and Toothless barely dodged as they flew out of its sight and into surrounding clouds. After a moment, Toothless flew past and fired at the dragon's wing, piercing a hole in it but not enough to cause much damage. In pure rage, the Red Death blew fire in random directions, not hitting its target. Naruto and Toothless flew upwards, but this time, the large dragon's attack was headed their way. Naruto leaned Toothless away from the attack, but the flames just managed to lick the fake-sin, burning through the material. Realising that their flight was going to get a lot more difficult, Naruto looked back and turned around so that he and Toothless were flying down towards the Red Death. "I hope this works" he muttered as they neared the massive dragon. "Is that the best you can do?!" Naruto shouted at the dragon, trying to taunt it. For some reason, the dragon didn't even move at that but as soon as Toothless makes a couple of snort like sounds, the Red Death roared and charged at them as they all dive towards the ground. "The hell did you say it?!" shouted Naruto to Toothless.
They flew down towards the ground, with Naruto looking behind to check to see how close the Red Death was and the fake-fin's condition. Looking at it now, half of the fin was disintegrated. "Just a little longer" muttered Naruto before glancing back again and saw the Red Death preparing an attack as the gas used for a dragon's fire began to emanate from its throat "NOW!" shouted Naruto as he twisted his foot so that Toothless would turn and fire straight into the mouth of the great beast. The gas ignited within its throat, burning from the inside. Bursting from the clouds, everyone on the ground saw Naruto and Toothless fly away from the Red Death as part of its body randomly exploded from the inside out. Toothless suddenly pulls out of the dive and flew up, past the Red Death as it slammed into the ground in massive explosion, thankfully it was away from anyone else. Toothless continued to fly up the Red Death's body, trying to avoid the raging inferno that seemed to chase after them. Glancing back, Naruto smiled seeing that they were flying away from the flames, before looking ahead and widening his eyes in shock as the Red Death's tail was falling towards them. He tried to manoeuvre away from it but just as he did, the last of the tail shredded away. "No" gasped out Naruto just as the giant club like tail clips them, sending Naruto flying off of Toothless. "NO!" he shouted before hitting his head against the side of the tail and falling unconscious. Toothless struggled to reach Naruto as the inferno came ever closer to them. Everyone on the ground gasped when they saw the two get swallowed into the boiling inferno before it finally crashed into the ground, creating a massive dust and ash cloud that blocked everyone's view.
It has been a few minutes since everything stopped. Only one person was running through the cloud of ash, trying to find his son. "Naruto?! Son?!" shouted Stoick in desperation. He suddenly stopped as something caught his eye. Looking, he saw a silhouette of something and rushed towards it, thinking it was his son. But when he got there, he only saw an injured and tired Toothless. The cloud of ash slowly dissipates, allowing everyone to see Stoick fall to his knees. "Naruto" he muttered in despair. Astrid pushed through the crowd only to freeze and gasp as tears welled up in her eyes. She slowly approached Stoick and stood next to him, with Gobber along with her. Everyone else made some space around them but each and every one of them took off their helmets in respect. Toothless open his eyes and looks straight at Stoick, who looked right back. "I am so sorry" said Stoick to the dragon. Toothless stared at Stoick for a few moments before lifting his wing up to show Naruto, who was still unconscious and with his hood down. Stoick eyes widened. "Naruto" he whispered in hope. He picked up his son and listened for a heartbeat. Smiling when he did hear one, he laughed as tears fell from his eyes "He's alive!" he shouted, making people smile in relief. The Vikings then roared out in happiness along with the dragons. Stoick leaned close to Toothless. "Thank you" he said with a genuine smile "For saving my son."
Gobber walked up to Stoick and looked at Naruto. "Well, most of him." Stoick looked at Gobber before chuckling along with the man.
-A week later-
Naruto laid on his bed, still asleep from that day. Most of his injuries were healed but there were still a few cuts and some had left a few scars. Toothless was whimpering and whining impatiently as he wanted Naruto to wake up. His ears picked up when Naruto groaned as he opened his eyes slightly. "Oh, hey Toothless" he muttered in a groggy tone as he looked at the Night Fury. In happiness, Toothless began to nudge and push Naruto, causing the blond to chuckle a little. "Yeah, I'm up. I'm up." He then shot up in pain as Toothless stood on his crotch. "Why did you-?!" he was cut short as he noticed his surroundings. He was in his bed, in his house, with Toothless running around the place like an excited dog wanting to go for a walk. "How are you in here?!" shouted Naruto in shock as Toothless began to jump around the ceiling. Naruto moved to stop the happy-go-lucky dragon before noticing that something was off. Throwing the covers off, he noticed that he was shirtless and ha d a few bandages around his chest. He still wore his pants but his eyes widened in shock and horror when he noticed what was missing. Memories flashing through his head, Naruto eventually sighed as he moved over to the side of the bed and set his foot onto the floor as a prosthetic foot, made of wood and iron, followed after. Toothless went to the ground and sat next to Naruto, just as the teen stood up. He wobbled and hissed as sharp pains coursed through his left leg before it eventually settled down. He leaned against Toothless as he grabbed his robe and threw it around his shoulders and both walked towards the door. He opened it, only to see a Monstrous Nightmare fly by. Caught off guard, Naruto was about to slam the door shut in a sense of deja vu, before noticing that most Viking's were out and about with other dragons.
On the Monstrous Nightmare was Snotlout and behind him was a bunch of people on dragon's, trying to learn how to ride. "Come on! Here we go!" shouted out the teen as he flew away, followed by the riders-in-training.
Going further outside, Naruto noticed his father waiting for him with a smile. Looking at the overly large man, Naruto commented "I died, didn't I?"
"No" said Stoick with a hearty laugh "But you gave it your best shot." He then put an arm around his son and looked around. "So, what do you think?" he asked, indicating to the transformed village that had dragons almost everywhere. Naruto just looked around in amazement, not knowing what to say. Some random Viking's noticed Naruto and began to rush over to the Hero of Berk; they asked him a bunch of question and Naruto just looked at his father, hoping for some answers. "Turns out, we just needed a little more of..." He gestured to all of Naruto "This."
"You just gestured to all of me" said Naruto with a smile.
Stoick smiled back "Exactly."
Gobber hobbled over with a smile before chuckling. "Well, most of you" he said, indicating to Naruto's new foot. "That's a bit of my handiwork. With a little Naruto flare thrown in. What do you think?"
Naruto lifted the prosthetic up and looked at it. "I might make a few adjustments" he said, making a few people chuckle.
Astrid then came out from the crowd, gaining Naruto's attention before she punched him in the arm. "That's for scaring me!" was her excuse.
Naruto just rubbed his arm. "Is this going to happen a lot? Because I-" he was interrupted when Astrid suddenly pulled him into a kiss that earned them both a few hoots and hollers from the crowd that had gathered. Releasing the blond with a blush, Astrid looked at him shyly "-could get used to it" finished Naruto before he pulled Astrid into another kiss that she returned wholeheartedly.
Gobber walked up to Naruto, holding a new saddle and fin for Toothless "Welcome home" he said with a smile.
Toothless then bounded through the crowd before landing on top of a random Viking. "Night Fury!" shouted someone as a joke, earning a few laughs.
-After a few minutes-
Naruto sat on Toothless, everything set up with his new foot fitting perfectly into the mechanism that would allow him to fly. He looked to his left and saw Astrid on top of Stormfly, ready to fly along with him. Without hesitating, they both flew into the sky, having the other recruits following after.
"This is Berk. It snows nine months of the year, and hails the other three. Although the past couple of weeks have been nothing but sun for some reason. Any food that grows here is tough and tasteless. The people are even more so. The only upsides are the pets. While other places have dogs, or horses, we have...
...we have dragons!"
[END]
Author's Note- I know it took me a little longer than usual but I have been very busy lately with my work and everything.
Up next is How to Train Your Dragon 2 and that will be up, hopefully, by the end of March, early April. If none of you have noticed, then my stories are usually done within three months now.
Another thanks to trebeh for being my Beta.
Merry Christmas and thank you all for reading!
