What makes a Man and what makes a Monster
Written by Silent Soul Ken
Assisted by Baron Von Nobody
Summary: It had been a day like any other day, until the giant meteors hit. All those in the blast radius find themselves still alive, having awoken in a new place, but things are not what they seem…
Chapter 3
Writing on the Wall
Naruto bent low to avoid the branch Hinata following him. It had been roughly 3 hours after they had left the school. The two companions were currently in a dense forest not unlike the jungle that was near the school. However the trees were considerably different they couldn't judge the wildlife though. Still they kept their attention everywhere to avoid an ambush.
Naruto, who had been in the boy scouts, walked tirelessly through the forest using the skill he acquired along with his unbelievably high natural stamina to navigate through. Hinata wasn't fairing too well, her feet were blistered and her legs burning with strain. She didn't want to drag Naruto down and thus never spoke about her current condition. Naruto though noticed her faltering steps and realizing they had walked without rest he stopped. "Let's take a quick break." he said raising a sweaty arm to wipe off an equally sweaty brow.
He heard the long relieved sigh and the 'flump' as she sat down on the ground. He turned to her and sat down as well. He pulled the pack around to the front and opening the zipper he rummaged through it. He pulled out a miniature cooler and opened it inside were two ice cold bottles of water. He tossed one to her and she caught it, he opened his drunk some then poured some on his head. He sighed as the cold water soothed his skin he closed the cap about ⅓ of the water was still left. He could hear desperate gulping and saw she was chugging the water, "Hey, hey don't chug it all down." he reprimanded, "I only got 2 more left and there's no creek nearby." he informed.
She stopped and lowered the bottle gasping loudly. "S-Sorry." She apologized, "It's just I was so thirsty." she muttered.
The blonde nodded, "So am I but we need to conserve our water and food supplies carefully. I don't want to eat… the local wildlife yet." he said. Hinata was silent she understood most of the wildlife bizarrely enough bore signs of being human though there were a few where they were just pure animal with no human signs but even then the thought chilled her. Naruto sighed, rubbing the back of his neck then he straightened, "Hey… when you fall asleep do you have a uh… strange dream?" He asked.
She ran her fingers up and down the chilled bottle of water, "Like what kind of strange?" she asked.
He opened his mouth then closed hesitated then finally spoke again. "A dream where you're in some kind of tube filled with water or something and someone is talking outside of it?" He asked.
Hinata was silent her head raising up as she thought her tongue slid out as she concentrated. Yet oddly enough she couldn't remember a dream like that… or any dreams to be precise. She shook her head, "No I haven't is it important?" She asked.
He shrugged, "I don't know it was just… weird." he said, he reached in the bag and pulled out two reese's chocolate sticks and tossed one to Hinata, she opened it and ate them quietly. The two sat there in silence. From the branches high up a being watched them hunched low. It didn't move just watched as they ate. When they finished they stood up and continued their journey.
The being rubbed a chin with a rather thick finger, "This could be troublesome." it said. Then it jumped to another branch.
Naruto spun around his hands held up already formed into fists. But he saw nothing, Hinata stopped and looked at him. "Is something wrong?" She asked.
He was silent then he lowered his hands, "I heard something from above but maybe it was my imagination." he said, "Let's keep going." he said.
-Several Hours later-
The two had come to a deep outcrop of bushes leaves and stones, they were both exhausted and but the sun was still high in the sky, The two came down under the shadow of the stones. They gave out a deep sigh, their bodies covered in sweat, Naruto reached into his bag and pulled out a towel wiping himself then holding it up to Hinata she grabbed it.
As she toweled herself off Naruto looked and saw it was quite deserted, heartened he decided to try an idea he had. "Stay here I'm gonna get some wood for a fire." and he got up and he walked away into the forest. Hinata for her part relaxed against a rock. As she sat there she adjusted her top slightly. She hadn't told him but when she had put on the new pair of bloomers that morning they were slightly tighter than even she expected. It seemed as if somehow her breasts and butt had gotten even bigger since yesterday. She blamed her hormones on it though the answer was simpler.
During her feeding frenzy her body still hadn't eaten enough to compensate for nearly starving so it ate and ate till it had built up in excess that was converted into fat to store away. However when she had reverted back to normal the fat ended up becoming permanent additions to her body. This fact would remain a mystery to her for the rest of her life, till she met a doctor who would not only save her life but give her a thorough examination.
The heiress fidgeted then she looked at Naruto's pack which was open. Her throat was dry and she wanted some cold water. She swallowed what little saliva there was, looking around she leaned in when she saw no one she peered into the pack and saw the mini cooler she pulled the cooler out popping the top, reached in, grabbed a water bottle, opened it and gulped down half the bottle. She gasped with relief closed it then put the bottle back in and closed the cooler. She set it back down and returned to her original position. She looked around but Naruto was still nowhere to be found.
Bored she got up and began to walk around, to stretch her legs and look around. The rock was quite large and rose up diagonally from the ground jutting out like a ruined building. The ground was clear with some flowers budding out and but as she reached the back of the rock she noticed that it was black as if scorched by some kind of intense heat. She reached to touch when she heard rustling she looked and saw Naruto walking up with piles of sticks in hand.
He walked up and set them down, he looked at Hinata, "What's up?" He asked, she shook her head, and he shrugged. He began grabbed a rock and began to hollow out a hole and when he finished he grabbed a stick to place it down when he froze. He stood up and looked up in the trees, he could see something glowing bright red his danger senses went off and he dropped the stick and ran to Hinata.
Hinata blinked as he charged at her, "What's-" but he tackled her to the ground. She was about to scream when a bright red beam of light shot out and slammed into the stone, the beam melting straight through the rock turning it into magma that leaked down cooling off rapidly in the air hardening back into stone.
Naruto looked up, "Someone's trying to shoot us!" he said, "I don't know how he's doing it but that fucker has a weapon of some sort!" he snarled. The Hyuuga didn't respond Naruto looked and saw her face was bright red. He looked down and saw his chest was mashed against hers. He rolled off of her, "Sorry, but seriously stay down I'll-," but he saw the red flash out the corner of his eyes and he looked at Hinata she saw the look and rolled, he jumped barely making it in time he could feel the heat hitting his shoes and he winced at the temperature. 'Shit that's hot! This fucker is seriously pissing me off!' he landed and growled his muscles bulged and his skin felt hot. 'This keeps up and I'll end up… wait that's exactly what I need!'
He stood up "Come on out on fight me fucker!" he shouted, but he wasn't given a response. He looked around but saw no light, he could hear though something clopping against wood. 'Hooves?' the sound stopped, he stood ready to move. Suddenly something flew at him he jumped and landed only to see it was a stone, "What the-GAH!" the beam hit the ground before him an explosion of heated dirt flying at him and he rolled away. "Rrrrgh!" Naruto growled he could feel his body shifting the bones breaking and melting, the skin rupturing only to heal back over, the muscles expanding, the tails growing… "AAAAAGHHHHH!" He roared aloud as he stood transformed in his beast form. The rage filled him threatening to overtake him, but he wrestled it down taking full control once again.
Hinata, who had went to make sure their bags were safe heard the roar. She felt a chill fill her all the way down to her spine. Her body froze, the fear bringing up unwanted memories, memories of when she was nearly killed. She looked and saw a hulking beast. It stood at least 7 feet tall with red-orange fur covering it's legs, torso and arms. 3 Tails whipped about behind it each with a black tip, it's body was slim but the muscles were quite clear, it turned and she saw into it's face. Fur covered the cheeks, neck, and back of the head but the face was Naruto, he stared at her with red slitted pupils then he looked up and leaped at her. She cried out, eyes closing, expecting him to gore her but she felt no pain. There was a slight sizzling sound and a low growl. She opened her eyes and saw he had been hunched over her his arms protectively around her.
Naruto grunted as he stood up, the burnt hole already fading away, "That beam hurts but it's not strong enough to rip through my body." he said. He looked around but as he did he couldn't help but think, 'This is so weird.' Naruto felt like he was inside of a shell or, to be more accurate, a suit. This beast like body he felt around him but he felt it wasn't really him. He could see himself inside the body, could see his body stretched out like one of those medical diagrams. He moved his body forward with simple steps and looked at his hand then twitched a finger. His hand curved into a claw and slashed with such speed it was too fast for a normal human to see. 'Wow such a simple motion could have a reaction… I wonder if… shit!' he heard it something whistling through the air. He turned and dashed forward and his hand shot out grabbing a rock the size of Hinata's head.
Naruto crushed it and tossed the pieces down, "Hinata stay close to me." he said, she looked at him then nodded and got up shuffling nervously to her. "I don't know why but he's targeting you." he told her. She shivered and grabbed his waist protectively. He raised an arm over her as he looked around carefully, 'What's this guy planning? Is he gonna attack or what?' he heard the whistling and his hand shot out again grabbing a rock from midair he threw it on the ground only to reach out to snag another rock more rocks began to fly from a variety of directions he eventually placed his body over Hinata's and he gritted his teeth as the rocks bombarded his body with such force that he could feel his skin already welting in bruises. It was then an animalistic sense warned him, he rolled to the side as he did a beam of heat and light flew into the trees. He looked up then he looked at Hinata, "Hey I got a plan do you trust me?" he asked.
Hinata felt a dread rise up but she knew that he wouldn't let herself be hurt, "Yes." she said.
Naruto nodded, "Good now listen to me carefully." he said and he explained his plan. "Ready?" he asked, she nodded. Naruto got up and shouted, "Alright you wanna play hide and seek motherfucker? Fine! I'll sniff you out!" and he ran toward the woods.
Hinata stood up, "Naruto wait! Come back!" she shouted but he didn't respond as he disappeared into the foliage. She shivered as she looked around fearful. She stepped forward slightly, a sudden urge filled her and she jumped to the side. A beam of red light shot over her bursting through the woods reducing the trees in it's path to ashes. She rolled onto her back, 'Naruto was right it's targeting me but why? What did I do?' she looked around watching for any sign of an attack. But her eyes weren't as good as Naruto's so all she could do was wait.
-Naruto-
Naruto moved quietly, with each passing second his command of his body was growing by leaps and bounds. He could make more minute and careful moves, and could even now move quietly. His feet barely rustling the grass, his ears pricked listening for the hidden enemy. He could hear the rough panting and leaves rustling as it jumped from branch to branch staying high. His own eyes could see through the dark possibly part of the fox of this form. 'What am I anyway?' he looked at his hands, they were large far larger than his body should've supported he could put a watermelon in his hand and it would fit quite snugly. The claws were also short, though a quick swipe at a tree showed they were razor sharp. His legs were powerful, he was quite sure if he jumped with all his strength he could jump far higher than the trees could go. He already knew the power of his arms and fists they could pummel bone to dust, and could possible even punch through solid rock though he would try when he could transform at will.
He raised his head and sniffed, despite it being the most human thing about him his nose was anything but human. He could smell so many things and with such clarity he could identify each smell and could even see it. The smell of his own sweat, the smell of a bunch of flowers bathed in sunlight, of dung being eaten by flies, he could smell Hinata's own skin and a part of him felt his mouth drool at the thought of her meat, while another part wanted her for his own. He felt a conflict of emotions at that. 'The fuck… I want to eat her… or fuck her... this body is messing with my mind.' he paused, 'Why did this happen to me? Why did this happen to all of us? Did I have to kill him! Did I have to kill anybody…? Will I have to kill more… how many more? Will I have to kill this guy too?' he stood there his body becoming limp. Then he heard her scream, and his anger flared up he looked and sniffed the air. "THERE YOU ARE!" he shouted and he jumped straight up.
"How in the-!?" a familiar voice shouted. But Naruto's hand shot up breaking the branch and wrapping around a hairy leg. He pulled and the body of a beast came down. He jerked his arm and released the beast flying into a tree where it crashed and slumped against the wood. Naruto walked forward, "Son of a… I thought I knew your voice!" the familiar voice came from the beast. Naruto paused he knew that voice.
He took a step forward, "Shikamaru?" he asked.
He was answered with a sniff, "God you stink of blood like her. But damn it's not as bad as her!" came Shikamaru's voice.
Naruto growled, "The fuck is that supposed to mean?" he said coldly.
Shikamaru stood and walked forward Naruto could see him fully, he was taller than before not as tall as Naruto but still quite large. He was probably a head short, his arms were thin almost spindly his fingers were thick looking like , but his legs which were covered in thick fur were quite large. His chest and upper body was also bulky, what was the strangest thing though was his horns. They were stag horns but they were quite thick and larger than normal and seemed to be split with some kind of strange film coming out of them, the film were glowing with a reddish glow. His face was a long deer face however his eyes were a clear indication of humanity. They stared at him with an intensity he had only seen when Shikamaru was deadly serious at something, which was usually a video game.
Shikamaru's horns shuddered then suddenly they began to merge into a pair of normal horns. "Look man I got no beef with you for real, and normally I wouldn't have one with whoever the hell is with you but this is a dog eat dog world where the top predators rule the world and in case you haven't smelt it she's one of the top predators! So I'm gonna do my fucking best to kill her before she kills me!" he snapped.
Naruto sighed, "Dude she isn't dangerous it's Hinata Hyuga, you know the daughter of the Hyuga family?" he said.
The deer shook his head, "Look maybe because you eat meat you can't smell it, but I can smell it! She stinks of corpses, blood and death in general! It's horrendous my nose can barely smell anything else no wonder you were able to sneak up on me! She is dangerous dude!" he said his voice almost pleading.
The blonde looked at where Hinata was, then at Shikamaru "Look I'm sure she can't transform and even if she can I can take her down." he reassured.
Shikamaru raised a dubious eyebrow, "You can't even transform at will." he said.
The delinquent flushed at that, "I'm working on it!" he said, he waved it away, "Point is I can take her down. I've already dealt with 5 others before you and trust me when I say I got the power to beat her should it come down to it." he said hoping to sound confident.
Shikamaru's eyebrow went even higher, "But could you kill her if you can't subdue her?" he asked. Naruto was silent and he looked away, Shikamaru was about to open his mouth when he saw Naruto's face. It was grim and heavy with a weight that explained already what had happened. "I see… so then what are you proposing I go with you?" he asked. Naruto's body was shrinking a slight steam coming off him as he returned to his human form. Shikamaru watched as he shrank back to normal.
Naruto looked up at him, "Yeah I figure we're better off together and you're a smart guy I know you'll figure out what the fuck is going on here." Shikamaru sighed and his own body began to revert to normal the steam also erupting from his body hiding the transformation. Naruto looked at his old friend and noticed he was wearing some loose camo pants his chest was bare showing the very slight muscle definition he had also his normally styled hair hung low just over his shoulders. Shikamaru was a thinker not a fighter. "Mind telling me about your little laser beams?" asked the blond.
The black haired boy shrugged, "Honestly I don't know how to explain it. All I know is I can use my horns to absorb sunlight and then I can turn that sunlight into that… bio-laser. Well I've seen weirder abilities. Like one guy, who looked like Shino I can't be sure, could turn into a giant beetle and he had insects coming out of his body." Naruto shuddered at that. "So do you want to know?" he asked.
Naruto looked at him, "Know what?" he asked.
The lazy genius sighed, "How to transform at will?" he said as if it was the obvious question.
But he was surprised when Naruto shook his head, "No I want to do it on my own." He said, he turned forward, "Hinata!" he shouted, "It's ok I got him." he said. Her form appeared between the trees. She smiled as she saw but it quickly turned into a frown as she saw Shikamaru.
She stepped back, "I-Is that what was attacking us?" she asked.
Shikamaru placed his hands in his pockets, "Last I checked I was as much a person as you not a thing. Unless that's what you want me to refer to as from now on?" he said his voice cold and irritated.
Naruto shook his head, "Relax Hinata he's with us now." he assured.
She looked at him, "B-But what if he tries to eat or kill us?" she said her voice fearful.
But the blond just waved his hand, "No problem he's a herbivore and we've already talked. So it's no big deal. Trust me we're better off with him on our side. You know how smart he is." he said.
Hinata eventually gave a begrudging, 'It's true he's one of the smartest students in school but that was another time.' she looked at him, "Why were you targeting me?" she demanded.
Shikamaru looked at Naruto who rubbed his head trying to find an answer, "Because you smell like blood and corpses." said the black haired teen, "It's pretty clear to an herbivore like me that you are trouble." he said. Hinata stared at him then she looked at herself, she wasn't the cleanest kid but she doubt she smelled like blood. It was then that Shikamaru sniffed, "Have you guys bathed?" he asked. They shook their heads, Shikamaru was silent as he rubbed his head, "Fine come with me I'll take you guys to my place." he said.
Naruto gave him a look, "You're place?" he asked.
The black haired genius nodded, "Yeah my place, small cave about a 3 minute walk, got a good supply of clean water, it's close to here where there's good grass." the blonde's eyebrows went up, "Yeah I eat grass, I can do it even now if I wanted to but I'm not hungry right now." he said, "So you gonna stand there or we gonna go and get you cleaned up?" the Hinata looked at Naruto and he looked at her.
Naruto rubbed his head, "Yeah might as well." and with that they grabbed their items and followed Shikamaru.
After a minute of silence Shikamaru spoke, "So where you guy's heading?" he asked.
The blonde looked to the north, "There's a canyon up ahead we wanna get to it to explore the island see if there's a way off of it." he explained.
The lazy genius turned to him, "How do you know we're on a island?" he queried.
Naruto pointed to the mountain that could be seen even with the foliage, "Up there I got pretty close to the top and saw the entire island, it's big but it's pretty small compared to most islands. I figured that if I found the ocean I could find a way off this rock. See if there's anything other than this place." he explained.
Silence emerged, then Hinata spoke, "Shikamaru, where do you think we are anyways?" she asked.
The shirtless boy shrugged, "No idea I'm trying to think of everyplace that could exist on our world and nothing comes to mind. However they say that only 95% of the earth is mapped but then again that final 5% is the ocean floor." He said
The Hyuuga was silent, "What if we're in… the future?" she asked.
Shikamaru shrugged, "That's the most likely scenario, but even if it is doesn't explain why we're alive especially since, at least I was, at ground zero of where those meteors hit. We should be dead but we're not." he reasoned.
The girl nodded, "Yes that's also been troubling me, we're alive and not only that so far all of us transform into… well most of us at least, into beasts." Naruto felt his temple twitch at the word beasts but he didn't speak. He was just listening trying to see how they felt about their situation. "Also there's the school it doesn't look like it's suffered age long decay but that it's recent and hasn't been put out of place." Shikamaru stopped at that.
He turned to face Hinata, "What do you mean the school? Are you saying the school building is here?" he questioned, looking concerned.
Naruto decided to put his voice in finally, "Oh yeah it's here, so is old man Ichiraku's ramen shop." This caused the two to stare at him. "What?" he shot defensively feeling the pressure.
Shikamaru rubbed his forehead, "I keep forgetting you're a moron sometimes but the ramen shop is here? Why not hole up there and just survive on Ramen for the rest of your life?" he asked.
The blond shrugged, "Cause I can't sit still anyway that just doesn't work out for me at all, anyway do I look like someone that can make ramen from scratch?" He asked, "The old man never uses pre made stuff he makes it all himself." he pointed out.
There was silence that hung for a few seconds, "This changes a few things," Shikamaru said, "It'll go over your head," he said to Naruto quickly, "Hinata come here we'll talk." he said and the girl looked at him then at Naruto who shrugged, she frowned but walked to Shikamaru to talk. They resumed their walk.
Shikamaru bent his head low, "So you're saying the school is here and it wasn't aged away at all?" he asked.
She nodded, "There wasn't like any grass or plants growing on the concrete nothing on the walls, there wasn't even a small amount growing on the walls." she confirmed.
The genius raised his hand to his chin, "No matter how I try to put that in with everything else it just shatters all my other theories. Except one," he inhaled a bit then he sighed, "We're on another planet." he said.
Hinata's eyebrows went up, "That… fits but why are we alive? Does this planet have an atmosphere like earth?" she wondered.
He shrugged, "Maybe it does, maybe it doesn't, maybe that's why we're like the way we are. The atmosphere probably affected our DNA somehow. Changing us so we can adapt to this new environment." he offered, Hinata was silent. This theory was by far the most logical but there was still one kernel of doubt in her mind. Fortunately Shikamaru had the same thought, "But that doesn't' explain how we survived the meteors, I can say for a fact that the explosion got me. I remember that really clearly." he said.
There was a long silence then Naruto chirped, "Hey this where we're going?" he asked. Shikamaru looked up and saw a cave, he nodded.
He walked inside, and they could see the slight embers of a fire, the black haired teen walked in and he grabbed some dried leaves and put them on the embers, then began placing sticks then branches as the fire grew. He stood as the fire illuminated the cave. Naruto looked around, it was a sizable cave with one entrance and one exit he could hear water dripping over the fire and turned to the source. He saw a small pool of water where water was flowing from two paths both of them falling into the pool. Naruto could see what would happen one could go in the pool of water and let the water from the path fall on his head, could also use that water to drink, especially if it didn't come from the pool below. Naruto walked up to it, and he saw that it went down deeper. "Do you know where it leads?" he asked
Shikamaru nodded, "it leads into a cavern system. But I didn't want to risk getting lost so I didn't go that far." Naruto rubbed his chin. He then reached for his bag and pulled out some hot dogs. "Holy shit a hotdog? Damn I hate being a vegetarian now." groaned the genius then he paused, "Wait you're gonna eat before you take a bath?" He asked.
Naruto shook his head, "Nah I'll use it as a flare, but first Hinata wash up I'll be outside." he said, and he walked out the cave and began to stretch.
Shikamaru blinked "He's not thinking of exploring the caves is he? I know where the general path leads to but what's he hoping to find?" Hinata shrugged, she walked to the pool of water and pulled her clothes off and dipped a toe into the water, it was strangely warm to the touch but the water dripping down was cold. She slid into the water and sighed with pleasure she rubbed her skin and closed her eyes as she gently kicked to stay afloat eventually she submerged herself and began rubbing her body violently getting as much sweat, dirt and grime off her body that she could.
The lazy genius stood with the gold haired vagabond, "Dude I know you have some crazy physical capacity but I don't think you'll find your way through and back if you die down there it won't be worth it." he said.
The blond grinned, "Well I'm going down for two reasons, one is to find another cave possibly one that'll get us closer to the canyon giving us a place to rest, and two wanna see if there's some fish down there, if so I'll need them even if they are… well…" his grin faded, he lowered his gaze as he straightened, "No matter how I try to avoid one day I'm gonna have to eat some meat even if was from someone formerly human. Honestly that scares me." he admitted. "To think I'm eating something that if it doesn't look human now it was then it really makes me wonder what I'll be." he clenched his hands, "Am I going to be a monster? Some animal that eats other beings just so he can survive one more day?" he held up his fists unclenching them and looking at them, "I don't know man… I… I just don't know." he said.
Shikamaru was silent, then he sighed, "Dude chill out. Do you really get worked up over eating food? Look technically everything animals and people eat was at one point a living thing, greens, veggies, fruits, meat, and to a certain extent certain candies. It was at point a living thing, yeah it's not something like someone who is formerly human but… well we did it, and I'm doing it now in a sense, the grass is just as alive as you or me, the plants are too I'm killing them so I can live. Look there's no simple answer to this question you got, there just isn't. But if you wanna live to see the next day you're gonna have to make some tough decisions including eating meat. You can try to survive on a diet of fruits and veggies but I don't think that'll work for you or for the princess. So you just gotta make the best of it." he said, "Not my best and most logical speech but this is just a really sticky subject." Shikamaru admitted.
Naruto chuckled, "Dude that barely made any sense but… yeah I get it. It's me or them and I can't really say no to food. No matter the moral issue of it all." he sighed, "Man I dunno... don't think I'll go check out what's down there today, think I'll just roast some hotdogs and hamburgers and call it a day." he said grinning as Shikamaru's face went sour.
The black haired boy turned, "You're an ass you know that." he said.
The blond shrugged, "Takes one to know one, don't tell me you forgot when you broke that one girl's heart when she tried to date you." came the snarky reply.
Shikamaru shook his head, "I already told you that girl was bad news, you know she's part of a gang and she was really trying to get me in it? Fuck that, I don't do gangs." Naruto raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah it was a ploy I saw that one coming a mile away, that's why I fucking nailed her like that I'm not gonna get thrown into that gang war shit, too lazy and too happy being a nobody." he said.
Naruto raised an eyebrow, "No shit who was she working for?" he asked.
The black haired boy sighed, "No idea just some small time punks, nothing to worry over." he said, "They wanted me cause they thought I could tell them how to get into places without getting caught," he explained.
The blond wagged a knowing finger, "Ah but you can, you remember when we snuck into that game store and took that game that had just came out?" he reminded.
Shikamaru rolled his eyes, "For one, fuck you, you wanted that game as badly as I did, and for two, you weren't gonna pay nearly a hundred bucks for that particular copy." he said.
Naruto stuck his tongue out, "So what it was worth it." he said peevishly.
The black haired boy brought his palm to his face, "You broke your console the game pissed you off so much, you had to buy another console just to finish it." he jabbed in.
A humph was the response, there was a pause then Naruto turned to Shikamaru. "Hey man have you ever had a weird dream where you are in like a tube filled with water and you can hear voices outside?" he asked.
Shikamaru scratched his head, "Yeah once but never got it afterward why?" he asked.
The blonde shrugged, "Just curious had that dream a few times so wondering if you had it too." he said.
They were silent again, they then heard footsteps and turned to face Hinata, "Um I'm done washing." She said, "I wanted to wash my clothes but decided to wait for you to finish what you wanted to do first and…" she began.
Naruto waved his hand, "I'm not going we'll find the canyons how we originally planned." he said, "I'll take a bath then I'll get to cooking." he said, "Hotdogs and burgers for us." he said, "Well us two not sure what you'll eat." he said looking sheepishly at Shikamaru.
The lazy genius rolled his eyes, "you're lucky I got some berries and fruit to tide me over." he said.
The blond grinned, "Ok let's eat then." and they went inside.
It was no exaggeration to say that night was a night of joy and merriment, recollection, stories, and tall tales filled the cave and the cruelty of the world, for that hour was forgotten. But like all things reality came back into place. Shikamaru picked at his teeth with his pinky nail as he laid on his side, "So we'll be going to the canyon tomorrow huh?" he asked.
Naruto, who was laying on his back nodded, "Yep." was the simple answer.
Hinata was silent, then she looked up, "Shikamaru should we tell him about… you know." she said.
The black haired teenager nodded, "Don't see why not." Naruto looked between them.
He then realized what they meant, "you mean about what's going on here?" he asked, with a nod the two began to explain. Naruto was silent, "While that is a good theory there's a few things that fall short. For one what kind of alien planet has water that we can not only submerge ourselves but also drink with no worries? Plus I've got a good smell of this place, this air doesn't smell weird at all, it smells like normal air. The grass, the ground, it all smells like earth, sure there's a few weird fruits and plants but this feels like earth." he said.
Shikamaru sighed, "Then it looks like we're back to square one." he said.
But Naruto shook his own, "No it gives me a theory, what if we're on earth but one in a different dimension?" he offered.
There was a brief pause, "That's… not bad. Someone is thinking. Hmmm…" another pause, "Well we'll figure it out later, I'm tired." Shikamaru yawned pointedly and he turned onto so he was facing away, "See you in the morning." he said. Naruto nodded and looked around eventually he went to a wall and rested his back on it, shuffling slightly then sighing and closing his eyes Hinata watched them both, she looked around trying to find something to lay her head on. Eventually she got up and went out the cave and began to grab some leaves, pulling them off, when she had enough she placed them on the ground and clumped them together she then laid her head down imagining it was a pillow and closed her eyes.
-Several Hours later-
Hinata rose from her slumber, though she wasn't technically awake. Her eyes opened but they were glossed over, unfocused. Her body hissed as it began to transform, her hunger not fully sated even after eating all the food earlier that night. She stood her body hung low over Naruto the mouth opening saliva hanging in ribbons. Suddenly there was a whistling and Hinata turned to the entrance she saw a bird like form it stood then it stepped back and she saw a fresh carcass, her smell organs on the side of her head sniffed the meat and she moved forward her feet silent as she stepped out the cave, the bird moving away.
They moved till they were in the forest and when they had the bird released the carcass and flew into the canopy. Hinata didn't bother to look after it as she pounced on the meat her teeth gnashing and chomping the flesh stripping it to get to the soft and flavorful organs. She devoured the corpse within minutes, when she finished she stood and her tongue slid out licking her entire face of blood before sliding back in. She looked at the messy boney carcass, her hunger was satisfied for now. She snorted and went back to the cave her body slowly returning to normal her clothes falling off her body as she did she walked back nude but her conscious mind still asleep the beast just falling asleep slumping down onto the pillow of leaves and sleep claimed it.
-Next Morning-
Naruto was awoken by a smell, he had smelt it before and it caused him to sit up instantly his body bolting up only for a brief sense of vertigo to hit him making him stagger. But he shook it off quickly and ran outside. Blood he could smell it in the air, so close that he shivered at the thought. He turned to see Shikamaru behind him his head raised high his nostrils sniffing. "We need to go." Naruto said.
Shikamaru frowned, "Yeah out there where we'll probably get mauled. We could be walking into one hell of a deathtrap." he pointed out. Naruto was silent as he thought then he went inside the cave.
Hinata sat up she placed a hand on her head it felt like the after effects of a hangover when she was forced to drink once. Her father grounded her and she had one hell of a headache in the morning. The feeling she had now was just the same, she saw Naruto, "Whatsh the commotion about?" She asked her voice slightly slurred.
He stopped, "There's a beast outside somewhere it killed something close by which means it'll be waiting for us if we got out that way." he informed.
Hinata was more alert at that, "Buh-bwuh? A-A beast? Outside!? What're we gonna do?" She asked.
Naruto smiled, "I think I have a plan." And he walked to the small watering hole.
Shikamaru walked up as Naruto pulled off his pants. "You know there's a chance you can die down there." he said, "Who know's what's down there." he pointed out again.
The blonde shrugged, "You're right we don't know what's down there. But we do know what's out there." he said, "See you guys later." and with that he slid in head first. Shikamaru sighed as he sat down and inhaled deeply but when he did he smelt it, the smell of blood, rotting flesh and organs. He turned his head slowly to look at Hinata and exhaled, breathing through his nostrils he could smell it clearly she reeked of it. However he could see the fear in her eyes, and could even smell the endorphins pumping out. It was strange that she was so afraid of something she did… but if she did do it would she be as fearful as she is now? He doubted she could be a predator with such a fearful face but he couldn't utterly rule her out based on that. He narrowed his eyes and turned away, he would have a long chat with Naruto if he came back.
-Naruto-
Naruto swam through the underwater cave which was being lit with strange moss that glowed, luckily so far it was a one way trip. However what worried him was that there would be no air pocket. He had about a minutes worth of air in his lungs and 10 seconds had already gone by. '50 seconds left,' he looked up but saw rock with some stalactites he kept going forward using the rocks surrounding him to push himself further. The passage was mainly rock wall below the glowing moss was illuminating his way, with a few openings in the rock showing a murky darkness.
He kept swimming looking up every 5 seconds, when he got to about 48 seconds of air, by his mental count, he saw it the rock curving up slightly, he swam up but did so slowly not wanting to impale himself on a stalactite. He was glad he did there was a pocket of air but in the middle of the pocket was a stalactite. Naruto's head emerged from the hole and he let out the breath with a huge gasp, then inhaled deeply. Floating there the young man looked around then grabbed the rocky spike and shook it but he didn't have the strength… he closed his eyes focusing on the feeling to transform. But focusing it to just his arm. However nothing happened, "Figures." he said, "I haven't mastered transforming under my own power." he acknowledged he then had an idea. He went under the water, and placed his feet on the rock wall below and began to push with his legs. He poured in his whole body into it, the rock cracked then it broke. He spun slightly but with it out of the way he was sure they would be safe from it.
He however did not throw it but held onto it just in case something was in here. He went back up to get some air and went back to swimming. He continued down the path as he did he noticed the path was widening, 'Oh a larger body of water?' he looked up and saw that the rock ceiling was going higher and higher up. He swam up and his head broke the surface. He gasped as he floated on the surface he looked around and saw he was in some kind of cave, there was more of that glowing moss on the walls enough to slightly light the area. He could see a smooth stone beach, and he moved toward only to stop.
He could feel it, danger was nearby, he turned in the water looking around and he saw it a shark fin coasting on the surface. Normally he would've swam for the beach but he had a weapon and he was confident that even if he lost it he could still win. So far his transformations triggered during anger, or the desire to protect something. But he was sure the broken stalactite would work if he hit the shark at the right time. He sunk under the water holding the stalactite tightly. He could see thanks to the moss above and below, it's fin belied it's rather large size though he was sure it was a bull shark but it's size could've made it a great white. He held the sharp stone in hand as it swam at him with incredible speed. He moved as fast as he could swinging the stone down. But the shark's open mouth met his torso. He felt himself being pushed by it's powerful body while it's teeth clamped down.
He still had the rock and tried to stab down but it's size was being held back by the water. He swung it down and it pierced the skin but not with enough force to penetrate fully. He grabbed with both hands this time raising his hands up only for his back to hit a wall and he felt the teeth sink into his skin! The blonde grunted as the water was turning crimson. His eyes were crimson as well his body was changing even as it bled out or rather because it was bleeding out. Muscles bulging and fur bristling the water bubbling from the steam his body was putting out. He clenched the rock tightly with one hand while a claw went for the shark's eye. The nail sunk in popping the eyeball and causing the shark to thrash. He felt the teeth dig into him but his regenerative ability was already countering the swung down and the rock hit it's head penetrating to the brain. But it's body still bucked and writhed.
The transformed human punched the rock down again and it went into the shark's mouth where it staggered. Then it's teeth lost their purchase and it began to float upside down up to the surface. Naruto grabbed it's body and went up when he emerged from the surface he tossed it's carcass onto the rock beach. He panted as his body began to shrink down steam again emerging in a thick cloud covering his body as he returned to his human form. He grunted as he fell forward on his knees and bent over. He panted then he got up and reached for his torso. The bite marks were gone and his wounds completely healed, however he could feel the new skin compared to his previously tested flesh. 'I guess I'll have that as a constant reminder.' he thought and moving back to the water he dived down to make his way back.
-Shikamaru and Hinata-
Shikamaru sat near the water's edge never taking his eyes off Hinata who sat across from him looking frightened. "He's been gone for too long… maybe something got him? O-Or he drowned even!?" She threw out her panic quite clear.
He sighed, "Just calm down it's only been 4 minutes who knows how far these underwater caves go fo-" but he stopped as his ears twitched. Perhaps it was part of his mutation but his hearing was much more sensitive now and he could hear the sound of something moving in the water. He stood up, "Get back." he said and he closed his eyes and his body transformed the steam covering it and he emerged in his monster form. He held up both hands ready to grapple whatever it was that was down below. The water bubbled then from it a golden head emerged and Shikamaru relaxed. He reached down and grabbed Naruto pulling him out, "Don't scare me like that." he said.
Naruto smiled as Shikamaru dropped him onto the ground, "Thanks for the lift, I found a huge cave down the path but you can't make it in one unless you can hold your breath for 2 minutes straight." he said, "There was a shark but I took care of it, I think it should taste good for me and Hinata." he said.
Shikamaru looked at Hinata who had rushed to Naruto and was looking him up and down. He gave Naruto a look that said, 'we need to talk later,' the blonde shrugged but nodded. "Let me get our stuff and we'll get going." he said.
-3 Minutes Later-
Naruto emerged from the water with the bag of supplies on his shoulder, he swum to the shore, emerging from the water behind him was Hinata and Shikamaru. Hinata swam to the shore while Shikamaru looked breathless his lung capacity was less than the average person due to his constant ducking out of Gym. They all went to the shore and Naruto began to get a fire going with sticks that were kept dry due to being in a plastic container eventually he had a fire going that illuminated the cave. He looked around and saw it was quite large were it not for the water it could be turned into a small town if there were enough people inside. He turned and saw the shark he had killed still there though some flies were starting to buzz around. He grabbed it and hauled it to the waters edge. "Not a bad find." Shikamaru said, when Naruto walked to the shoreline and shoved the shark in to clean and eviscerate it.
Naruto shrugged, "It was a gamble that paid off." he said, "So…" he spoke in a low tone now, "What did you want to talk about?" he asked.
The black haired genius sighed, "Not now I wanna see around this place first." he said and he got up and walked away leaving Naruto to his work.
Shikamaru could see the cave had a few split paths and he grabbed a piece of wood and held it aloft as he explored one path. As he went down it he could see a path that joined with the one he was and a quick check showed it was the split path. He was a little annoyed but glad that was out of the way. He continued down the original path. As he walked the path broadened out and he was in a type of small atrium of stone.
He looked around and looked up to see glittering jewels, that made it look like starlight he smiled as he looked and then saw it, on a wall were writing. It read "What is real? Is real something you can touch and feel? Is it something you can taste and smell? Is it the feeling of your heart beating in your breast? Or is it the the thing you see before you? When you close your eyes do you know if you are dreaming? Or are you seeing what is really real?" he stared at that writing most people wouldn't understand it but he'd heard of something like this, it was a philosophical question that went into the question of whether people were actually awake or whether they were just the dreams of a great being and by sleeping their dreams was actually reality.
Yet when he thought about it, there was something strangely compelling about it especially the part of whether this was real or a dream. He remembered Naruto asking him about a dream that he was floating in water once… but before he could think on it he smelled cooking meat and knew Naruto was cooking up the shark he headed back for now he would explore more later.
-Naruto-
Naruto hummed gently as he slowly turned the sliced pieces of shark meat over and over on the pan using a fork, having slathered them with some oil and seasoning they were emitting a wonderful smell. He had carefully cut the shark up a process that took up about 10 minutes separating the parts of it that were inedible and that would ruin the flavor of the meat. Naruto felt the beast want to spring out and devour the meat but he was holding it back with his will power. Hinata was watching him cook quietly but he never saw the slight twitches of her eye and and jaw nor was she aware of them herself. He had several more pieces of meat to cook but would first try this to see how it was. He heard steps and looked up to see Shikamaru coming.
Naruto laid the pan down to the side and reached into the bag he pulled out what looked like a cantaloupe and tossed it to Shikamaru, "Here I know you can't eat meat anymore." he said and he went back to the pan. Shikamaru caught it then he brought up his knee and brought down the fruit. It popped apart leaking liberal amounts of juice. He raised one half to his lips and drank the juice which was sweet tasting like a fruit punch mix almost.
Naruto went back to cooking and after a few more minutes he pulled off the shark fin and brought it to his mouth. After some blowing he took a bite of it. He chewed, he had sufficiently cooked it enough that the scales didn't slice his mouth open the taste was a bit odd but was good enough he could swallow. He held out the piece to Hinata. She sniffed it then grabbed it and bit into it. Her face wrinkled slightly, "N-No thank you." she said, Naruto shrugged and at the remainder of the meat. He reached into the pack and pulled out some steaks and hotdogs. He set those in the pan to cook while grabbing another to slather on some more shark meat.
-30 Minutes later-
Naruto let out a belch as he rubbed his bloated stomach having eaten the entire shark at least what he could eat. The rest of it's body, mainly it's organs, was in the water which decomposed in the water smaller fish swimming up to snatch up some bits and pieces. Shikamaru sat close by having finished 3 more of the fruit that Naruto had tossed, and Hinata was stretching, "I'm gonna look around for a bit." She said and she walked away. When she was out of sight Shikamaru looked at Naruto.
The blonde sighed then waved him to come closer, Shikamaru scooted over till he was next to the blonde. "She's dangerous while you were swimming that scent of blood from this morning was all over her. She was the predator." he said.
Naruto rubbed his head, "This again? You sure it's her? Cause I've never seen her transform ever." He countered.
Shikamaru nodded, "Yeah I'm sure and just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened. It's quite possible she transforms when she's not fully conscious." he suggested.
The delinquent scratched his chin which was starting to get some slight stubble, "You mean like in her sleep or something?" He asked.
Another nod, "Exactly that would mean that she transforms when the human part of her is asleep it gives the beast free reign which means if we're not careful we'll end up on the menu ourselves." Shikamaru warned.
Naruto shrugged, "And how exactly do we keep ourselves off the menu?" he asked, "I can stay up for a few hours but I'll need sleep eventually." he pointed out.
The black haired genius was silent, "So far she seems to only transform when she's asleep AND hungry which means she has a high appetite. While her human self will be satisfied that doesn't mean the monster is satisfied so we gotta over satisfy her human self till she can transform at will and we know how much she needs to eat." He concluded.
The blonde look up to see Hinata walking back toward them, he gave a nod and Shikamaru was silent, when she went up to them Naruto smiled, "Find anything?" He asked.
She nodded, "Some strange words on a wall and there seems to be a part of the cave that leads to a river and out to somewhere else it's quite fascinating. But uh… I think something else might be here I had a feeling like I was being watched or something." she said, "So I came back just in case." she said.
Shikamaru frowned, "That would be a problem we already had a shark here who the hell knows what else is here." he looked at Naruto.
But the blonde shrugged, "Gives me a chance to learn how to transform so I'm not complaining." he said eventually.
Shikamaru closed his eyes, "Seriously I know you like a fight but this is getting a bit ridiculous we're not a bunch of battle hungry fighting machines you know." he said.
Naruto shook his head, "It's not entirely that, the more I fight the more I learn about that body, you might find this hard to believe but when we're in that form we move differently and the body overall feels different. I can't explain it but it feels like we're piloting like a power armor or something. I want to know what that body can do fully." he said.
The black haired boy opened his eyes, "For once you're right these new bodies feel different from our current ones. Not only do we now have new senses and tastes but these beast bodies don't function the same as our human ones. I'm still learning stuff about myself though I've learned quite a lot already." he said.
Hinata looked at them confused but not wanting to butt in, then she remembered, "Shikamaru did you see those weird words?" she asked.
He nodded, "Kinda strange someone put those there." He said, "I mean what point does it serve?" he said.
Naruto blinked, "what words?" he asked finally, Shikamaru and Hinata explained when they finished he scratched his head, "That's weird it's not like we're dreaming right now we're awake, and we can feel this stuff and taste this stuff." he said, "It's not like we're in some kind of giant dream or something that'd be too… what's the word coim, coin?" he struggled.
Shikamaru though knew, "Coincidental." Naruto nodded, "Yeah that's just too coincidental all of us dreaming the same dream? Just not possible." He said, he took another bite of the fruit in hand. "Not bad this, but it sucks not being able to eat meat man, you two are lucky. Though technically Naruto you can eat fruit can't you?" He asked.
The blonde nodded, "Yeah I can if i want to can't eat grass that's for sure, but fruit and veggies yeah." He said.
The black haired boy nodded, "Huh, well…" he stretched, "I'm gonna look around the cave a bit more see if I can find an exit." he said, and he got up and walked away.
-Later On-
Naruto stood at the water's edge looking into his own reflection he held up his hands clenching, and unclenching it. He remembered being in the body of his monster form, he could feel those muscles, and feel his fingers. But like he realized before it was like being in a suit a suit that was connected innately with his muscles and nerves. Even the simplest of movements would cause a huge reaction. He tried to envision himself in his monster form… feel the muscles and bone, the nerves. He closed his eyes concentrating, on the sensation but he didn't transform. He sighed then sat down, he looked back to see Hinata resting on the ground asleep. He scratched his head, 'Where the heck is Shikamaru?' he wondered.
-Shikamaru-
Shikamaru stared at those strange letters on the wall he felt that they weren't just random scribble, a feeling in the back of his mind the subconscious told him it was very important. Most of the time people would ignore the subconscious but Shikamaru had been taught that his mind was a valuable ally and one that he should pay very close attention to. He ran the words over and over in his mind. He began to walk as he did held up his hands looking at them, then touched the stone wall, rough and coarse as most forms of stone was. But not all stone was rough and coarse some could be quite smooth, usually stone on cave walls. The giant passageways in caves were created by a numerous series of objects but the most common form was water. The stone in his hand should've been smooth due to the water but it was rough.
He frowned he looked to his left and saw another large body of water that also had the glowing moss. His gaze swept this new cove and he realized he was lost he sighed, went up to the edge and sat down. As he stared at the water he rubbed the stone on the ground which was somewhat smooth but mostly rough. It all felt real, but somehow it felt… wrong but he couldn't explain it. He sat down thinking on it when he heard the sound of claws clattering on stone. He concentrated on transforming when he heard a roar and saw a beast running toward him on all fours. From what little he could see it's mouth was frothing with saliva as it charged like a rabid animal.
Shikamaru considered his options it was coming too fast for him to transform he could run into the water and try to outswim it or outrun it. The swimming was a desperate bid as he wasn't much of a good swimmer and he didn't know if it lead to caves and if it did where those caves went. If he ran he could try to get it just as lost as he was, either way he could get out paced. His best bet was to run and hopefully he could use the environment to help. He knew how to access some of his new beastial strength in this current form mainly his leg power. But it would wear them down much quicker than normal, he had to be careful and precise.
He turned and ran toward the cave heading down the left passage the beast ran after him snarling and growling. He ran down the hall gritting his teeth at the pain of his near bare feet running on the ground. He heard it snarl and he jumped forward bending his legs up and landing he bounded up into the ceiling. The beast leapt at him when he had first landed Shikamaru turned his body so his feet landed on the ceiling and he bounded back down behind the beast, it scrabbled toward him tripping on it's own feet, as it fell before getting up it's claws scratching the floor. It chased him again as he ran then made a sharp turn into the other tunnel. His feet scraped the ground and he felt the sting of an open wound and blood spurting out from a cut toe. 'Fuck this hurts…' he growled mentally.
And as if to mock him the words on the wall came into his mind, 'What is real? Is real something you can touch and feel? Is it something you can taste and smell? Is it the feeling of your heart beating in your breast? Or is it the the thing you see before you? When you close your eyes do you know if you are dreaming? Or are you seeing what is really real?' he ran but as he did he looked down at his foot he could see the blood squirting out, and he felt the hot pain in it as well. He turned his gaze forward and blinked, something felt… strange. He began to wonder even as he ran wonder whether or not… he felt the bodily weight of the beast as it tackled him. Shikamaru grunted as he fell to the ground the rock ripping into his skin, he focused power into his legs and began to wait, they rolled and he felt the ground on his foot!
He pushed and jumped into a wall with the beast slamming into it. It howled and released him as he had jumped into a particularly bulging portion of the rock wall. They fell and Shikamaru got up but the damage was done, he grunted as he limped forward his legs having lost their running power and the scrapes on his legs and chest bleeding profusely. He grunted and closed his eyes. He focused on transforming it would take 30 seconds to fully transform, but he hoped the threat of death would speed it up. However his hope was a false one as the beast stepped on his arm with a clawed front paw and bit down on his arm.
Pain shot through his body and he opened his mouth to scream only for a paw to cover his mouth. He grunted and squirmed but the pain only intensified as his arm was torn off. His eyes bulged with the pain, he breathed through his nostrils catching the foul stench of the beast. 'Fuck this… is a fucking crappy way to die! If this is all a damn dream I'd like to wake up… now if possible.' and he could see the beast chomping his arm before turning to his head, it dropped the mangled arm and raised the paw on his throat placing it on his chest. It's mouth opened it's rotted and blood filled breath hitting his nose… his senses were overloaded and he passed out with one final thought, 'Naruto is gonna fucking destroy you… fucker…'
-Naruto and Hinata-
Naruto tapped his leg in worry Shikamaru hadn't come back yet and he heard strange sounds from the cave passageways. He looked at Hinata who was shivering, he sighed he wanted to go after Shikamaru but he didn't want to leave Hinata either. He got up and walked to her he grabbed her by her shoulders and she looked up at him gasping slightly in surprise. "Hey I'm not going anywhere ok? Relax." he assured.
Hinata nodded, "Thank you." she said and the two sat waiting then they heard the sound of claws clacking on the ground and a deep guttural growling. Naruto stood up arm held out hand over Hinata's body as she stood up and went behind him fearful. Naruto grabbed a burning stick and threw it at the cave passage, a snarling sounded and the clacking became rapid and something swatted at the stick sending it flying into the water where it went out with a hiss. Naruto clenched his hand's into a fist as his nose smelled a familiar scent. Blood and he knew who it belonged to, he could feel it the change starting to take him, "get back…" he snarled. The steam enveloped him as he transformed when it cleared he was in his beast form snarling at the beast that just came into view.
It looked like a large wolf with pitch black fur, red eyes and a snarling muzzle with sharp teeth. It had the tattered remains of clothes on it's body but in it's mouth was a familiar pair of pants. Naruto growled and the wolf turned to look at him it snarled back then it's eyes turned to Hinata and it gave a low howl, it stood on it's hind legs and Hinata gasped. "K-Kiba!?" She gasped.
Naruto turned his head, "You're saying that thing is Kiba?" He asked.
She was shuddering and she gave a nod, "Y-Yes the first day he found me… and… and he tried to rape me…" She said fear in her voice. Naruto raised his hands and cracked his knuckles.
He turned back to Kiba, Kiba was a shell of his former self saliva dripping from his mouth his eyes rolling madly and his fur was matted and frayed, "You know back before this I thought you were an ok guy, a bit of a perv, but an ok guy but you made two fuck ups. First: you tried to rape someone. Second: You killed one of my best buds, I'm gonna enjoy beating you to paste, Kiba!" and he charged forward, the wolf also charged it's claws outstretched. Naruto thrust his shoulder out and jumped forward Kiba rolled to the side and swung up with a claw only for Naruto to grab the hand and then spin just enough to slam his knee into the arm. Though it bent it did not break and Kiba retaliated with another swipe at his head. Naruto grunted as the claws dug into his neck and raked up but he pulled his head back to avoid his eyes from getting clawed out. A hiss as the skin bubbled and began to heal over.
Naruto growled, "Bastard!" and released Kiba and swung his right fist into a liver blow. Blood spurted from Kiba's mouth as the blow sunk in hard and deep. Naruto slammed Kiba's body down and raised his foot for a curbstomp but Kiba's hands flew up grabbing the foot then pulling. Off-balanced Naruto fell but turned the fall into an attack thrusting his elbow out slamming down on the black wolf's solar plexus. A horrible crack sounded, Naruto rolled away then leaped up high elbow once again thrust out. He connected yet again and blood spurted out as Kiba's organs were pierced by bone.
A pitiful howl came out only to get silenced as Naruto rolled grabbing Kiba by the throat as he stood he spun and slammed Kiba into the floor again with such force that the beast bounced into the air. On his way down Naruto swung a soccer kick at Kiba's back the sound of bone crunching then snapping filled the cave. Kiba soared forward landing with a sickening crunch on the ground. Panting Naruto walked forward his fists wet with blood as he looked at Kiba who was twitching and gasping.
The fox stepped forward, when he neared the wolf it gave a weak but clear slash at his foot. Naruto's hand lanced forward grabbing the claw and he squeezed bones groaned then he raised the hand up thrust his knee out bringing the arm on it. With a terrible 'Crack!' the arm fell still while the wolf howled with pain. Naruto let the arm drop then he knelt down and held up his hand fingers pressed together he aimed for Kiba's neck. With a single thrust he stabbed Kiba's neck he could feel the blood pumping into his fur he pulled it out and glared down at the now dead body. He relaxed then sighed as his body reverted back to its original form the blood of Kiba's body all over him. He grabbed the body, 'weird… he doesn't feel heavy at all.' he dragged the body to the water and tossed it in bodily he watched it sink turning the water red. Suddenly his legs felt weak and he fell onto his butt grunting with surprise Hinata ran up to him her hands on his shoulders.
He felt her hands tremble, "A-Are you alright?" she asked.
Naruto was silent but his heart was thudding in his chest as he began to realize what he had done. True he had done it out of anger but since that anger was gone now he could feel the horror of what he'd done. Kiba had been Naruto's friend, not his best of friends but a friend nonetheless. They'd fought but it wasn't because they hated each other but it was the way they spoke to each other through their fists. Now that he thought about he had heard Kiba's fists in that fight. They were angry, confused, and… worst of all, afraid. Kiba was scared out of his mind and as a result lost himself he had become an animal to escape the pain of the situation on him. Yet he remembered what Hinata said that Kiba had tried to rape her… 'In this world he was probably crazy with his new power felt like he could do anything… but then something came and showed his place in the food chain… and through that he lost himself by becoming a beast in order to rise up in the chain only to lose it all… will that happen to me?' he looked at the red water and a sudden urge to dive down and devour Kiba's corpse swelled inside of him.
He stood up, accidentally knocking Hinata back "I'm gonna go for a walk real quick, sorry." he said and he walked away to gather his thoughts. Hinata just watched him go sadly ashamed of how useless she felt. She looked at the red water and suddenly her vision went black.
-Naruto-
Naruto ran his hands through his hair as he walked trying to calm his thoughts. 'This world is truly a dog eat dog world where the strong devour the weak. I have to be strong… but what if I lose myself in the pursuit of strength? What if I become an animal just so I can be strong? What if I lose myself just to survive?' he stopped and held up his hand staring at it. 'Can I be me? Can I have power without losing myself?' he thought back to all the fights he ever had he then remembered something the kids used to tell him after a fight.
"Your like an animal, you sure you're human cause you sure don't act like it!" he hadn't thought much about it before, but he did have a nickname due to that, 'The Wild Fox' named because he always fought like his back was against the wall which it usually was just like the fox, it would run till it was cornered and when it was it would fight back with all the ferocity it could to hang onto life. However that was the only way he was similar to it, unlike the fox who would run from a fight he ran toward it. There was a thrill he got from a fight, a sense of being alive that only he could find… well him and Kiba did. They felt their best in the fight.
He clenched his hand into a fist and then opened it again he could see his own human hand there. "I'm… not human but not an animal… I'm… me…" he said though he wasn't sure what that meant. His ears then picked it up, the sound of water splashing coming from where Hinata was. He turned and ran as fast as his legs could carry him. The splashing intensified then suddenly stopped but he kept running when he got there he saw Hinata lying on the edge of the water unconscious her clothes torn, "Hinata!" he walked up to her he grabbed her and shook her, "Hinata! Hinata!" She groaned shifted then raised her head, "Hey you ok?" he asked.
She looked at him, then nodded weakly, "Y-Yeah I'm… fine… I don't… remember… what did… did something happen?" She asked, Naruto looked around then at the lake the red was clearing up and he saw that Kiba's body was gone. He pulled her away from the lake watching it water didn't stir, the red slowly sinking into the depths. He stared at it then glanced at Hinata his eyes narrowed slightly.
Shikamaru's words echoing in his mind, 'She's dangerous while you were swimming that scent of blood from this morning was all over her. She was the predator… ...It's quite possible she transforms when she's not fully conscious… that would mean that she transforms when the human part of her is asleep it gives the beast free reign which means if we're not careful we'll end up on the menu ourselves.' he stood up pulling Hinata up as he did.
She looked at his face and for an instant fear flashed across it, "I-Is something wrong?" she asked recovering.
He stared at her then he moved away, "No, nothing's wrong." he went to the fire and after rustling the flames he pulled out a burning stick, "Come on we should get away from here if something in the water we should move in deeper." he said.
With that the two packed up and began walking Naruto leading the way, he didn't need the torch as there was light thanks to the glowing moss but it would help if there were other dangers. Even as he walked he couldn't help but glance in Hinata's direction briefly. Eventually he stopped as the came to the fork in the path, he set down everything and put out the torch he lied down, "I'm gonna call it." he said simply.
Hinata was confused as he faced away from her, he glanced once more at her, then turned away again it wasn't long before he was snoring. She went to the pack and reached in for a hotdog but then realized she wasn't hungry… which was strange considering she ate about 3 hours earlier. But she didn't argue with it, and after a while laid down herself and went to sleep.
I'm sure quite a few people were waiting for this, it's finally here. A new chapter for something I'm working on. I've been digging away at a new huge project. If you wanna read it you'll have to go to my tumblr. Just search Silent Soul Ken SSK to read it I can't post it here cause... well let's just say I got attention from security and I don't want to have to leave here anytime soon.