A/N: I FINALLY recovered the missing chapters for this fic!
Well...sorta.
Long-story short, I had SIX, count 'em, SIX chapters ready for this bad boy, then my computer crashed. As in melted. To slag. FIFTY THOUSAND words, all gone. Poof! Up in smoke! Somehow, I managed to recover enough to work with, so I've spent the last week reconstructing things as best I can. 'Tis not easy rewriting so much in so little time, so instead of waiting forever to get it all out there again, I decided to release it as it comes.
Surprise! Back on the updating wagon again, as it were.
For those who wonder, I recently acquired a copy of Shadow of War and while I can't speak to the matter of microtransactions-considering I don't use them-the game itself is a bloody marvel, even better than the first. I'm midway through act II and well...I kinda feel bad for Shelob all things considered. Yes the lore's gotten horribly confusing, but watching the accumulated memories was enough to make even me flinch and that's not done easily.
ALSO!
I have a fucking nemesis who, I swear to got, resembles bloody BANE from Batman! His name is LITERALLY, Krimp Jaws and he is STALKING me! Motherfucker doesn't speak a word, he just grunts, growls, screams, and CACKLES like a motherucker, all the while merrily chopping me down to size! He doesn't even kill me! He just walks the fuck off every time I run out of health!
Freaking Humiliation...
On a less ranty note, I may also try a more nonsensical approach to things in the form of something in the "Not Going Home" series.
I mean, Shadow of Mordor was nice and all, but Shadow of WAR really caught my attention with the Fortress aspect, as well as the idea of "branded" captains and Warchiefs still holding true to their core personalities. To that end, I've received many requests to do something along those lines. It amuses me to no end to think of Naruto forming his own little army, not through domination like Talion, but sheer overwhelming charisma. Not for the purpose of war, mind you...but other things.
Because if there's one things Orcs respect, its strength. Now, who has that in spades?
Just think of the chaos he could cause!
That aside, this upcoming story will be of very few new stories I plan to release anytime soon, my health willing. If I have an idea, I plan to make it a damn good one before I just toss it out there, as I devote myself to my other works, soon to number into the hundreds, and potentially dozens as I whittle them down. I need to reassess why I want to write, for the joy of it, and I can't do that by letting you guys down with old, crappy stories I wrote in my early days.
Be on the look out for it!
Furthermore, for those wondering about the wraith, she may be who you think she is. She may now We shall see. The fact of the matter is Naruto's fighting a war on two fronts here; both against the enemy, and the Ring he now wears. It remains to be see what will triumph in the end. To quote a certain madman, if you think this story has a happy ending...
...you haven't been paying attention.
People will die in this story. Others may well be corrupted. Some may suffer a fate even worse than death. Don't expect it to be all sunshine and rainbows with the good guys triumphing without losing a single life. We're already weeeeeeell past that point.
If any of you aren't comfortable with that, this is your chance to leave!
Anywho, here we are!
LET THE NEW ERA BEGIN! Now...
...off we go! I proudly present.
...the awaited return of...
...GRAVEWALKER!
'Tis but a taste of things to come!
Furthermore, comparisons of a certain Orc to Bruz are intentional.
You'll soon see why as I have big plans for this particular individual indeed!
Hope you enjoy the commemorative title! I figured a bit of tongue in cheek would be fitting...
"One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the Darkness bind them."
~?
Shadow of War
Night came to Konoha, and death with it.
Sakura didn't much care for either.
She was far too focused on trying to find a way to survive the next five minutes; let alone the next hour without losing her head. Her mind clamored for a solution like a caged beast, seeking a way out and finding none. It found only chains. In particular, the shackles binding her arms and legs to the floor. Blasted things! Were it not for these accursed chains, were it not for the mark on her shoulder that stole her strength, she would've put this behind her long ago. She needed to escape. Not just for herself, but for her daughter. Sarada wasn't long for this world-not with that head wound. If she didn't receive some much-needed medical attention soon, she wouldn't even be alive by the time the executioner reached her place in the line. Their sole saving grace stood in the fact that the creature seemed to be taking its time with each of its victims.
Even now, she could hear the screams coming from that tent.
It wouldn't be long now.
Emerald eyes flicked across the empty street, searching for some sign, for something, anything that might aid in their escape.
She found nothing.
What was once been a thriving populations center had been rendered nearly unrecognizable by the invading army. Beautiful, once. Now? Black with shed blood and burning buildings, thick smoke choking the night. Little more than a feasting or killing ground for those Uruks and their ilk. Judging by the rank stench permeating the air, they might've done more than that. It wasn't fair, a small voice in her head raged impotently. Even with their numbers, they might well have beat back the horde if hadn't been for Sasuke's betrayal-no. She refused to think about him. How he'd abandoned them. Left them to die. How he'd slapped that seal on her ,when he turned. The way he looked at her as if she didn't even ex-Stop! Thinking! About it! she hissed at herself. To dwell upon her husband's ruthless betrayal would only drive her further into the dark when her daughter needed her the most. That way lay madness. That way was-
"Hello there, my lovelies!"
Speaking of madness, here came the madman himself.
The "madman" in question was an appallingly green-colored Uruk known as Goroth, clad in spindly armor and bearing a rusty blade. The one in "charge" of overseeing the prisoners and their executions. Sakura used the word loosely. He was little more than disgusting filth in her eyes; filth who'd likely overwhelmed a shinobi through sheer luck or numbers, then claimed their jacket for himself as the spoils. He thought it made him look handsome. Fancied himself dashing, even. Damn him. Damn him to the darkest pit. If her hands weren't bound and her strength sealed, she would've crushed his head for the insult. Him and his band of toadies.
As it were, those beady eyes were roving somewhere they shouldn't.
"Right, then." he began cheerily, leering at her daughter. "Who should I start with, sweetness? Maybe you? You don't look like you're long for this world anyway." When the nearly insensate Sarada didn't reply, the Uruk scowled and struck her across the face with the back of his hand. "What's that?! Can't hear you! Perhaps you'd like my boys to have a word with your mother, hmm?!"
To her surprise, Sarada reared back and spat in his face.
It was the worst possible thing she could have done.
"Oh, you'll regret that, you will. I'll make you sc-
His threats did not avail him.
A blur of tattered cloth leaped from a nearby rooftop and fell upon the Goroth like lightning, slamming a broken blade into his lower torso. The wounded Uruk uttered an ear-piercing shrieked as he reeled back to clutch at this admittedly minor wound, causing his hooded attacker to liberally clobber him with the hilt of his weapon until he fell to the ground insensate. Sparing no more than a backward glance for Sakura or her daughter, their savior lunged upright, summoning a bow to hand, an immaterial quiver of arrows already manifesting upon his back.
His foresight soon became apparent as Sakura realized he'd inadvertently brought an entire squad down on their heads.
No sooner had Goroth fell than every Uruk in the camp came alive at once; some drew weapons, others reached for axes, the rest went for their crossbows.
"It's the bloody tark!"
"He got Goroth!"
"Gut 'im!"
The hooded man's sole concession to the danger came in the form of an annoyed grunt.
Then the bow blurred.
There could be no other word for it.
Sakura saw no movement; only the air around the weapon shift just so. A heartbeat later twelve dead Uruks lay at their feet, feathered with so many arrows they resembled living pincushions. One dared twitch and their savior filled its maw with still more ethereal arrows. They were the lucky ones. The handful of Uruk-hai unfortunate enough to survive the storm were left agape in awkward confusion as the hooded man dispelled his bow and raised a hand toward the heavens, unable to comprehend the meaning behind the strange gesture. They never saw their own kin fall upon them; blue-eyed Uruks dropping down from the rooftops and emerging from alleyways slaughtered those who remained with cruel efficiency. They'd scarcely processed the abrupt deaths of their kith and kin before they met their own.
With another eerie gesture, the hooded bade his small blue-eyed army to be still.
Then he turned his wrath elsewhere.
Rounding on the still-stunned Goroth, their rescuer brandished a blazing hand and descended upon the Uruk with a snarl that seemed more beast than man. The sight seared itself into Sakura's eyes like a second sun, momentarily forcing the pinkette to avert her eyes even as its owner clamped it around the beast's mouth to stifle his startled screams. A heartbeat later the glow abated, dimming enough to reveal the owner of said hand, his hood torn back by the brief bout of violence. Sakura froze. The sight of her old friend-for this was most certainly a familiar face-made her blood run cold, all thoughts of escape forgotten in an instant.
'Naruto?!'
He didn't seem to hear her.
"Where did you get that jacket?" he demanded, the words a hiss. "Speak!"
A low groan answered as Uruk struggled in his grasp.
"Got if off some tark...with a ponytail."
"Describe him!"
"He...had a scar on his face! 'Cross his nose!"
Naruto went terribly still.
Iruka.
"I...see."
Sakura flinched.
Naruto...slightly more so.
Even then his reaction startled her.
"ABANDON THE DARK LORD AND SERVE ME!"
Goroth crashed to his knees with a muffled howl, shrieking as the brand burned into his face, a ring burning horribly bright. The token resistance offered up by its feeble mind immediately found itself quelled, torn apart and shredded so completely that it never had a chance of breaking free. By the the time the thought even occurred it was already too late. Far too late. Naruto and wraith took hold of its mind utterly, dominating it, mind, body, and soul. They dug their claws in deep an' took hold of his mind, and then the pain ended.
His eyes burned blue and he stood, slowly.
"Who do you serve?" Naruto snapped.
"Dark Lord, Bright Master, its all the same to me, really. Long as I get to lop off some heads along the way. I'm your man, boss! Where do we start?" the sudden cheer-no, it was fervor-in the creature's voice was possibly disturbing, sending Sakura's stomach roiling in disgust. What foul sorcery was this? Was this the same creature that had threatened her daughter with a fate worse than death? Just what he had done to him and where he might've gotten that kind of power...the implications disturbed her more than she cared to admit.
"Good." the blond ground out, heedless of her dismay. "Now, I have task for you. Gather your men. Bring them to me."
To her disbelief, the captain actually saluted.
"Right, boss!"
He cut the Uruk free and sent him on his way much as a backwards glance.
"Ohhhhh...now we're getting somewhere."
Naruto's grin was decidedly savage as he watched his new slave walk away, Sakura thought. Too savage. It was the look of a beast, twisted and cruel. It wasn't the face of her friend, or teammate or even-now leader. It was cold. There was something hard and dark in those glittering blue eyes, as though all kindness had been stripped from him, leaving only...something else.
"Naruto...?" she dared venture.
Only then did he finally seem to notice her.
As if he hadn't even been aware of her until that very moment.
"Hmm? What?" he blinked, as though coming out of a dream. "Ah. There you are, Sakura." stooping, he reached down and gave her a perfunctory pat on the head. "Didn't even notice you. Here. Let me cut you loose and get that seal off you. It's gonna be alright.
"Sarada," she managed weakly as he broke her chains, "She needs...
"Right, right," her teammate chattered, helping her stand. "Gotta get that pretty little head of hers seen to. Just a moment."
"Wait, what are you-
"There!"
Gently, ever-so-gently, he placed a hand on her neck. His palm pulsed blue and she heard something break; in the next instant all her strength came rushing back. All her power, but more importantly, her chakra. Frantic, she darted towards Sarada and set to work mending her injuries. Within minutes-and to her unassailable relief-her daughter's intermittent breath resumed a healthy pace, her pulse stabilizing. It took all of her training to reign herself in and maintain her composure. Safe. She was safe. Everything was going to be alright. They'd figure this out, find a way back from it all, and...wait. In her worry, she nearly missed it entirely.
Almost.
But not quite.
It was then that she glimpsed it.
She caught it in passing as Naruto issued orders to his "followers", saw it smoldering faintly on his finger. Had it been anyone else, she would've dismissed it as a mere bauble of sorts and put it from her mind. But Naruto didn't wear jewelry. He never had. Never wanted to. So why was he wearing a ring, and why did it look so...so...oh. No.
The Ring.
The very thing that had driven her husband mad, now worn by her dearest friend.
Oh.
Oh, dear.
It all made sense now.
"Naruto," now it was Sakura's turn to rise, to place a hand on his shoulder. "Where did you get that?"
"Get what?" the blond turned, distracted. "What're you talking about?"
"The Ring."
"I found it." he muttered. "Its helping me."
Like it helped Sasuke? an untrustworthy voice crooned.
"I...I don't think you should be wearing that. You need to remove it."
He looked at her as though she'd grown an extra head and asked him for a dance.
"You must be joking."
Her silence spoke volumes.
"Sakura, I am using this Ring to protect my people!"
"Can't you help them without it?" she pleaded, but the stony defiance in his eyes dashed her hopes.
"We're going to make things better." he insisted, taking hold of her shoulders, pulling her close. "We'll drive these invaders out of our village, our lands and then all others! The Ring's helping me, but I need you to be with me on this too, Sakura. I can't do it alone."
Sakura couldn't bear to say the words to his face, so she nodded, waited until he'd walked away.
...I'm with you."
Only then did she dare give voice to her thoughts.
"But the Ring, its changing you..."
A/N: WHAT A LOVELY DAY INDEED! Ah, sorry. Just couldn't help myself. What kind of chaos and bloodshed can Naruto get up to here? Ohhhh, quite a bit. Don't believe me? BEHOLD THE PREVIEW. THAR BE ONE THIS TIME!
Hope this one makes you think!
(Preview)
With a roar, Naruto drew his sword and raised it high.
Behind him, his army echoed the cry.
"FORWARD!"
"Look, I'm here for you. Ya know that, right?"
"Noted." he didn't look up from the papers strewn across the table, or the plans he'd etched into them. "Now, you're dismissed."
Still, she lingered.
"Uh...kid?"
"What is it now, Anko?" Naruto growled. "I'm busy."
"I can see that, but...
It was times like these that she secretly thanked kami she hadn't let herself go. Not slacked off on her training. That she'd not gone soft like the others. If she had, she would've gotten old and fat and then where would she be? Dead in the siege, like so many others. Like Iruka. Her heart gave a painful wrench at the thought-not just for herself, but what the man's death must've done to wasn't taking it well-which was to seen of course, expected even, but this? She worried most about what he was becoming. That damned ring was only going to make things worse in the long run, but how to make him see? She knew he was suffering; hell, knew it better than most, if only because she'd suffered through similar circumstances.
But this was more than that.
She'd always favored him; there had been an unspoken attraction there, long before he became Hokage, that neither gave voice to. Never acted upon. The time had never been right. Yet now...why now? A thorn of shame pricked her and held her back. Was that what drove her to speak now? Selfishness? The desire to swoop in and claim him for herself? What manner of vulture was she, to do such a thing, knowing how Sakura felt? Sakura, who clung to Naruto now for support, after Sasuke her pillar, her rock, her everything, had betrayed her. Did she even truly care?
More importantly, did she?
"Stop dancing around the subject and tell me." his voice dragged her out of her reverie. "You've never held back before."
'Eh,' she shrugged, 'Fuck it.'
If everyone else was too afraid to say it, she would.
"I'll be blunt, here. I think...you might have a few screws loose."
"Screws loose? Who? Me?!" he recoiled visibly from her touch, venom burning in his eyes and voice. "No! Not at all! I only had my family SLAUGHTERED, lost the village, got screwed over by my best friend, found myself possessed by a wraith, and can't seem to bloody die! Its not like its anything SERIOUS!"
"I just meant-
Blue eyes rounded on her, blazing a ghastly color she didn't know.
"Spare me your platitudes! You know nothing of my-
SLAP.
"What the hell?!"
"Snap out of it, damnit! This isn't you!"
AND THE INSANITY CONTINUES! So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas, Review...
...Would You Kindly?
R&R~! =D