A/N: ACTION HEAVY CHAPTER INCOMING! AND SOMEONE TAKES A BEATING~!
WARNING! This chapter gets intense! For those of you who can't handle certain scenes, I advise ye to leave now while ye can! Esdeath is very much herself in this story, so this chapter gets rather...
...ahem...
...you know what I mean.
But if you're still here, welcome!
I AM BACK AGAIN! LONG LIVE THE REQUEST YEARS!
Someone asked me to do this, so here I am! Not sure if anyone has done this yet, but here we are. Be sure to vote for what will happen! THERE IS a poll on my profile! Vote to decide which faction Naruto joins! Also, remember, if you haven't read/seen Akame ga Kill, you're going to be mighty confused. I recommend the wikipidea if you're lost. Now then, as per the anonymous request, I am once more obligated to say that I own none of the material within, merely the idea for this story.
Now for your questions!
Q: Does Naruto's Teigu body have some Fate Stay Night abilities?
A: Caught that, did you? Yes, he does. As to the why, this chapter explains it.
Q: Why didn't Naruto take Koro and Perfector before he fled?
A: Well, he didn't KNOW about Koro. And it is implied that he left Perfector behind, in the first chapter alongside Stylish's corpse. Leaving THAT Teigu in the hands of the enemy is a very bad idea and it may well come back to bite him if anyone gets it up and running. Not sure if a Teigu can use a Teigu, though...
Q: Why is Naruto immature at times, i.e. blushing, sputtering and the like? Isn't he, well, ancient?
A: He is indeed very old. But despite all the torment he's been through he's still young at heart. And let's face it, who wouldn't sputter when you've got someone like Leone or Esdeath coming after you! Trust me, we see his serious side in this chapter at times.
Q: I though we had a choice in this fic? Why did he go with Night Raid?
A: Um, did you not see the poll? Night Raid pretty much won the day by now. 416 votes over Chaos which had 388. The Empire came in DEAD LAST with a measly 147. He was NOT shoehorned into going with Night Raid. Technically, he using them as much as they are him. Their interests simply align with his and he's loosely affiliated with them for the time being. He COULD go rogue. He could not.
Q: Esdeath is going to take Naruto, isn't she?
A: Feelings will certainly be proclaimed by the end of this chapter, yes.
Q: So Naruto has a lot of skills as a teigu. Any more that we haven't seen?
A: Remember, THIS Naruto lived a full life before being brought back as a Teigu. That's a lifetime's worth of experience pertaining to jutsu, not to mention his new body and the experiments Stylish conducted on him, In short, he has a LOT of abilities in this fic. Don't worry, he basically explains them himself, so read on to understand.
Now...
...off we go!
And remember!
I!
Own!
NOTHING!
LET US BEGIN~!
BLOOD AND VIOLENCE AHOY!
Once more as a disclaimer, I do not own ANY quotes or lines you may or may not recognize from TFS, other movies or shows. I receive no monetary value from using them. They are for sheer entertainment purposes only, so I hope you enjoy 'em!
And to clarify, Esdeath is NOT able to stop time; as of the beginning of this chapter she has yet to develop that OP skill. And remember, it can only be used ONCE a day.
Makes the fight far more interesting, don'tcha think?
"I've struggled for a long time with survivin'. No matter what, you keep finding something to fight for."
"And what are you fighting for now?"
"I'm fighting for an end."
"What kind of end?"
"My own."
~Naruto.
Kill the Queen
"SWEET BABY JESUS, NOT THE FACE!"
Naruto squawked like a startled parrot and leaped backwards in frantic retreat as the blue, one-armed demoness that was Esdeath pounced upon him. Rape face! That was a rape face if he ever saw one! And she might have caught him too, had he not lapsed into flame just before she could grab him, leaving her fingers to find flame. The explosion hit a moment later-hot and cold air colliding with a deafening explosion of steam. A hiss of pain told him that his gambit had been successful, yet his senses screamed a warning all the same.
A shadow passed over him and he spun, calling another sword to his hand.
"No, you don't!"
Flame met frigid steel and his heel shot out, catapulting
By all rights that should have stopped Esdeath right then and there. Even animals knew not to stick their noses where it hurt more than once. So when she staggered out of the smoke, bearing an ugly wound upon her side and missing most of her skirt she should've been scowling at him. Flinging curses for being wounded twice in a row, losing her arm, no less. But instead of disappointment, the general's visage was an odd study of contrasts; sheer euphoria vying with an all-consuming lust that chilled him to his very bones.
"Come to mama." she purred, stretching her arms out towards him.
Naruto's life flashed before his eyes in an instant.
"Fuck no!"
"I love a good challenge!"
The blond retaliated with a towering line of flame, forcing Esdeath to bound over it lest take damage to her legs. He was there to meet her in midleap, blazing blade crashing down against hers with enough force to drive all sensation from her good arm. Sparks skittered between them, two predators snarling at one another as each struggled to break the deadlock. To his surprise, Esdeath didn't use her teigu to drive another spike of ice into his body, something she could've easily done even with only one of arms.
At length, they disengaged and stood.
"For crying out loud, why are you after me?!"
"You're strong, you have an innocent smile, and you're the only one whose matched me in combat." she declared primly. "I like that. I like you! Don't think you can escape from me! No matter where you go I'll find you. You can run, but I'll just catch you-
"You mean this?" the blond remarked, holding up the tracker chip from his now-bloodied arm. "Dug it out while you were drooling." He crushed it in a fist, grinning. "Now, I could run from you. But I get the feeling you'd just cause trouble. So if its my head you want...
As she looked on, the Unbound Teigu shifted his stance, blade borne like a lance.
...I'm going to make you work for it."
"Excellent."
Grinning toothily, she channeled her power into the air, utilizing one of her favorite attacks.
It seemed strange what desire made foolish people do. She'd a prime opportunity to kill him just now, yet she had discarded it in favor of taking him alive. Never in her wildest dreams had she dreamt she would meet somebody like him. And she certainly never dreamed she be losing to him! She was supposed to be the dominant! Not the submissive!
What a wicked game to play.
"Grauhorn!" (Grey Horn!)
To Naruto's eyes, a giant horn of ice seemingly arose from the thin air to eviscerate the mist, roaring forward to obliterate him at blistering speeds. At least, that seemed her intention. He didn't move. Scowling, he fanned the flames that were his shroud with his will and the frigid spear froze in its flight, coming up just short of his face. As though gripped by an invisible fist, the icy javelin and the one controlling found it could trespass no further. Though its edge proved close enough to touch, it struggled in vain. A thought rendered it so much useless water, held aloft merely by his will.
As Esdeath looked on in quiet disbelief, that cold liquid reared up, adopting physical shape and form. Gaining scales of hardened water, a maw filled with impossibly sharp teeth. She had a second longer to comprehend her error before the blond snapped his fingers and it surged towards her, fangs bared. It put Liver's capabilities with the Black Marlin to shame.
"Back at you." Naruto growled. "Water Dragon!"
For the second time since their brawl had begun, Esdeath laughed.
"YES! That's more like it!"
Leaping away from the aqua beast she grinned and sliced out at him with her remaining arm, creating a storm of bloody ice needless at her fingertips. A flick of her wrist flung the icy projectile at the blazing blond. Alas, to her annoyance they simply melted upon reaching him and returned as a thousand watery senbon; the hardened needles forcing the general to shield her face with her arms lest she come to resemble a pincushion. It should've been a small matter to simply freeze them at will and fling them back, but she found that the blond's grip on the water remained even after the attack dissipated. But this didn't upset Esdeath, not at all!
Far from it!
The challenge excited her!
But that excitement soon waned into unexpected confusion when her prey shouted and abruptly slammed a boot into the ground, cratering the soil beneath. Esdeath blinked, hanging from a branch. What kind of attack was that supposed to be? It hadn't done any-
"Ground Gladius!"
The ice-wielder stiffened as the earth shifted once more.
Underfoot.
With an unholy roar, the world burst to life beneath Esdeath's precarious perch, rising up into a sharp, gigantic spire with the appearance of a curved blade. Fast! Sharp, too. Viciously so. Sharp enough to break through her defenses, slice apart the azure curtain of her hair, and into her back. Strands of blue hair danced about wildly on the wind the general to hang there in a fit of disbelief, bracing herself against the edge with her arm, hissing softly. Too close. If she hadn't dodged in time she might've lost more than her hair, sustained more than the angry red wound between her shoulders. And yet for some reason...
...she couldn't help but be thrilled by it all.
'Earth, too?! Oh, this is too much! I LOVE it! If this continues...'
"Oiiiiiii," the blond's voice called up at her in a loose drawl, "Are you dead yet? Its kinda annoying when you keep playing possum."
...I'll just have to get serious.'
Emboldened by the brief outburst, she hoisted herself up off the earthen tower and glowered down at the forest below. Standing tall and proud she imperiously raised her remaining arm and thrust a finger at the distant speck of fire in the forest below. Clearing her throat she called out to the Unbound Teigu, her voice pitched to carry:
"Listen well, Teigu!" she declared, tilting her head back! "You are strong! Marvelously so! I respect that! However, you are not stronger than I! One way or another, you will be mine!"
"Then why don't you come down here and get me, ya icy bitch?!" The blond shot back, giving her a one-fingered salute. "Or are you too weak?!"
Blue eyes gleamed.
"Gladly!"
Gathering herself into a crouch, the icy terror channeled most of her strength to her legs. However wounded she might be, those limbs were still in fairly good shape; she had yet to sustain any significant wounds to her lower body, either. Thus, she still deemed herself able to fight, despite being put on the defensive thus far. After all, Esdeath was nothing if not determined. Determined to prove that she was strong. The strongest. That she wasn't weak and faltering like the rest. That she was superior.
Deepening her crouch, she placed her remaining hand against the upturned earth, fingers hooking into the hardened soil like icy claws. Muscles contracted viciously.
Released.
Then she launched herself at him like a grinning rocket.
"NARUTO!"
"Oh crap, she's triggered!"
With the force of her landing the ground burst into winter, exploding outward in a roiling storm of jagged frozen spires, each jutting out toward the rogue teigu. Once again, Esdeath was irked to see that her prey didn't deign to dodge. Naruto merely curled his free hand into a fist and it burst into flame, forming a snarling sphere of fire in his palm. Aside from that he didn't move. Didn't take a stance, he simply held the small wisps of fire in his palm, absently cradling them as she looked on.
Just dodge why don't you!? her mind shrieked! Ability or not, you're going to get hurt if you don't-
When he moved she barely saw it.
One moment he stood still as a statue, rooted to the ground while angry red fire flickered in his hand.
Then he simply vanished.
"Where are you looking?"
"...!"
In the next instant a hand locked around Esdeath's shoulder from behind, informing the proud warrior that he'd somehow maneuvered himself to her exposed flank. Animal instinct sent her spinning to attack, but far too slow, even as she realized what was about to happen the earth itself betrayed her, a prison of stone and soil locking around her ankles. She broke free immediately, but that second cost her most dear. Flame burned her eyes orange as that bristling heat shot well upwards, engulfing the entirety of his right arm. Said arm snapped forward a heartbeat later, flame shooting from his knuckles as their master released his hold upon the ancient element. A wave of his arm and it was loosed, flung at like a burning maelstrom.
"Drop dead! HIKEN!" (Fire Fist!)
Oh.
That was Esdeath's last coherent thought before the pillar of fire devoured her defenses and barreled into her still-turning body like a hurricane, ripping her from her feet to fling her away into the forest. Fire had always been her weakness and though she had trained overcome it through the years, being blasted at point blank wasn't something you could prepare yourself for. Pain, even less so. Fire and flame tore at her body, branding her, burning her, searing into her very soul with such force that she couldn't even bring herself to scream; opening her mouth would simply give the fire
Such pain!
'I'm going to die.' A part of her realized, stunned. 'If don't do something right here, right now, I really will...NO!'
All living beings fear death.
No matter how strong or weak we might be, we all dread that
The same could be said of Esdeath.
Desperate, flailing in raw agony, she tried to freeze the roaring column of fire scorching her skin. Part of her knew it was an act of futility; one could simply not expect a blazing, white-hot flame to turn cold. It defied all logic. Yet for lack of anything else to attempt, she took the full brunt of her power and threw it at the fire. To her disbelief, she succeeded, in only partially and not at all in the way she'd intended. Instead of flinging up a barrier of ice and falling away at the last instant she produced a different result entirely.
The world stopped.
Just for an instant, time ceased to be.
Esdeath didn't stop to question this unexpected blessing. Rather, she seized upon this change. She tumbled away from the frozen fire, her body steaming. And not a moment too soon. Even as she fell out of the path of the great blaze it roared by, the sheer force of its passage swatting her aside. extinguishing itself against the side of a hulking boulder. She gazed at the scorched stone in disbelief, eyes bulging as the stone cracked an' fell apart before her eyes. A few more seconds and that would have been her.
'Just now...what did I...?'
"What the hell was that?" Naruto's rough voice grated on her already raw nerves. "I'm sure I got a direct hit, there. How are you still alive?" Looking up, she heard the blond approaching in the mist, but the haze hid his face from view. He sounded just as surprised as she felt. Blue eyes flicked down to her still-trembling hand, the fear of death still very much with her. So. This was her limit, then. So often had she claimed not to fear an end to her life, so long as she went down fighting. But it was there. She'd nearly died-until she'd done something to stop it. Now, she didn't have an answer for him.
Or herself, even.
Not yet.
"Well," he rumbled, "I think its about time to wrap this up."
Slowly, the thick fog abated, exposing the two combatants to one another. Naruto still looked fresh as a daisy, his tan skinned scuffed by the signs of battle but otherwise unblemished in spite of her best efforts to bring him down. He was still going strong. Whereas she'd had to freeze her wounds to prevent them from bleeding he'd simply healed. He took everything she had to offer, accepted every wound, and came back for more. He simply refused to fall. Refused to bend. Refused to submit. To her attacks. To her.
Esdeath's tattered pride couldn't take it.
"Just how strong are you?!" She muttered blackly to herself, the words too soft for her foe to hear. "Its not fair-
"Ah." An abrupt remark cut through her thoughts like a knife. "Your hair looks kinda nice like that."
Esdeath blinked.
"My...hair?" she croaked.
The once flowing curtain of her cerulean tresses had indeed been cut short; now the ragged, singed, locks barely came past her chin. It lent her a more severe look, but she didn't know that. She simply was. And he had just remarked upon it. A light pink flush crept at the corners of her cheeks and unbidden, her finger began to twirl at the matted blue locks.
"W-Well!" she muttered as she touched the side of her face, flushing when strands of blue came away. "I do hope you're happy. You've ruined my hair. It'll take months to get it that long again."
"To be fair, I was aiming for your heart back there." Naruto admitted cheekily, tapping his sword to a shoulder.
"Ah. So you don't like girls with long hair?"
He grew thoughtful, thinking.
"If its long you can grab it, I mean-OI! Stop distracting me!"
Esdeath couldn't help herself; she laughed with delight at his reply and spread her arm wide, as if in a kind greeting.
"That settles it." she decided. "You have to be mine."
"And the Empire's, it seems." he sighed.
Esdeath brightened. "So you'll come-
"No."
"Pity."
She stepped in and Naruto stepped back.
It saved his life.
Instead of striking his brain-which he was fairly certain served as his core-the rapier skewered him from behind and drilled him forward three paces. Rather, it would have had he not planted his feet and willed his body to remain still. Another inherited skill of this form was its ability to completely negate any and all forms of momentum and movement. Stylish had actually been clever to grant him this much at least. Not a very handy skill in the face of combat, but very useful when you didn't want to be flung into the sunset or ravaged by a madwoman.
Said woman was currently balking at him as though he'd grown an extra head.
Naruto sighed.
"You know," he remarked quietly, gazing down at the bloody steel jutting out of his chest, I never get tired of that shocked expression when someone sticks me with a sword. 'Eh? Why didn't you die?' Or something like, 'That should have hit your heart!' Bah!" scoffing, he turned his head around a full three-hundred-and-sixty degrees, eliciting a painful crack in his neck. "As if a paltry wound like this would be able to kill me. C'mon now, blue! Stop playing games and get serious already. Do you want me to take the other arm, next?"
Behind him, Esdeath stiffened.
He felt it in the blade, her shock, coupled with a strange glee.
"No reply? Guess its my turn, then. Hope you're not too attached to this...
With casual slowness he reached up and took hold of the blade, preventing its owner from pulling it free. Then still holding the forged steel, he crushed the weapon and bent the rapier around until it hooked against his chest, forming a useless curve. Esdeath tugged mightily but to no avail. A crushing backhand barreled into her face, crushing cartilege and bending bone, staggering her. In that brief moment of inattention her grip on her fractured blade loosened and the blond took full advantage.
Ripping the steel free from his chest, he curled it into a ball and cast it down onto the ground.
"I really should apologize," he yawned as the wound closed, absently crushing the sundered steel beneath a boot. "Ordinarily, I'd give you a handicap or something, make this easier for you, ya know? But right now...
A hand snapped southward without a glance, clenched knuckles barreling into her face in casual backhand.
...I'm not feeling very nice."
Once again, he wasn't prepared for the laughter.
"Still so determined! Just as I thought!" Esdeath doubled over, an exultant giggle trickling through the mist between them. "Not just fire, you can even manipulate earth and water to such a degree!" Even from within the clouded haze, her voice carried with it a silken edge of menace. "You truly are worthy of me. Why don't we go back to the capital now, Naruto-kun? I can promise you this little transgression will be forgiven if you do~!"
"Seriously, I'm not as pure as you think. And Like I said," The blond replied, a strained smile twitching at his whiskered cheeks, "I'm flattered by your attention, really, but my answer is no! I ain't the submissive type! Besides...
"Besides?" Esdeath tilted her head, blinking.
"I hate the empire." Naruto finished readily, brandishing his flaming blade. "Don't you understand that? They used me. Abused me. Tore chunks of my body off and used them for god knows what." his jaw clenched, and a tooth cracked in his jaw. "They're scum, and so is that fucking minister. I'd sooner die before going back to them if its all the same to you."
The general's heart gave an awful wrench.
"You don't have to serve the empire," she argued, "Only me. Would that be enough?"
"Its all the same to me." Naruto repeated flatly. "You're with the Empire."
Es's gaze darkened, and she hung her head.
"I see."
In the next instant, her hand snapped up.
"Then I will use force to subdue you!"
Naruto blinked, restraining a frown.
"Force? Aren't you alreaaaaaaaaa...
His words trailed off as she leaped into the air.
Moments later, a towering shadow swam into existence overhead, blotting out the sun.
"WHAT?!"
The towering glacier-for nothing less could possibly describe its majesty-was a sight in-and-of itself, easily large enough to eclipse the forest thrice over and crush everyone within. It hung in the clouds for a moment, seemingly remain stationary only through the sheer will of its mistress. Then, as if provoked from that very thought, it began to fall from on high. Obliterating every thought, blocking out all the clouds in the sky, and coming for him. Despite himself, Naruto felt his jaw briefly come unhinged. This was overkill, wasn't it? Definitely overkill. It had be overkill. The very idea of a technique so ludicrously overpowered even existing in this world was enough to boggle the mind. Unbidden, his composure slipped, just for a moment.
"Oi, oi, oi?! What the hell is that?!" he wailed, thrusting a finger at the falling glacier! "A fucking ice meteor?! That's some Madara-level bullshit! Are you seriously trying to kill me?!"
"If something this weak could kill you then I wouldn't be interested!" Esdeath shouted back.
Naruto sighed deeply.
Two could play that game.
She wanted to terrify him, eh?
Shinobi had won that war long ago.
"Oh for fuck's sake...guess I'm using a trump card!"
Atop her falling comet, Esdeath frowned.
Trump Cards.
Most Teigu had one.
Their ultimate ability, nearly unstoppable. But just now, Naruto had said "a" Trump Card, rather than "my" Trump Card. Something about the phrase nagged at her. Yes, he was a Teigu, so it made sense that he would have a special attack of some sort, but the way he phrased it...
...did he really have multiple...
A hand rose.
"Watch closely! And don't tell anyone about this!
Grinning, the Unbound retaliated by curling both hands into a fist, forming a ball of golden flame in each. With a grunt he slapped them together and spread them apart again, subsequently combining the two. Esdeath saw it as little more than a tiny yellow speck from her vantage in the sky. Was it a fire attack of some sort? No, the shape was all wrong. As if he were channeling something, creating. Summoning. A flare of light sang itself into existence around him.
And he began to chant.
"I am the bone of my sword." his hands burned white-hot as she looked on, fingers curling into a fist. "Steel is my body." sharply he dropped to a knee, body shimmering with heat. "Fire is my blood. Unknown to death, nor known to life. A being filled with strife. I am the shield. Before me all enemies yield. My weapon clear. Though you are but a copy, come to me now!"
Raising his gaze, he glared up at the falling berg.
At her.
"My skin is steel!" he barked, eyes burning gold. "Here and now, I call thee to heel!"
With these words he raised his flaming palms into the sky and drew his hands tightly together. Saffron light coalesced between his palms, forming a pommel. Then a hilt. Followed by a blade. Rippling and fluctuating, his creation blurred constantly in his hands, seeming to exist in one moment, then fade into the next. As though it were little more than a phantasm, but more and more realy with each passing second. A brilliant blade that gleamed impossibly bright took a physical
"Through rising fields!"
Raw light rose from his surroundings, from the air, the earth, and the sky itself.
"In the heat of battle! In the name of the King!"
The frozen glacier was nearly upon him now, threatening to crush him into oblivion with the sheer weight of its presence. If Naruto noticed, he didn't seem to care. Instead he spun sharply, cradling the blazing blade in either hand, fingers tight around the hilt. The earth quaked from that simple motion, trembling as the blond raised both hands overhead. And heheld them there, an immutable pillar standing fast as the light built unto itself, the song rising to a great and terrible crescendo.
A flicker of fear sparked to life in Esdeath's chest at the sight of that sword. Some unknown dread she couldn't explain but instinctively knew all the same. Terrified, she struck her falling comet with her fist, sending it shrieking forward the last few yards.
"NAAAAAARUUUUUUTOOOOO!"
An angry roar answered, but it wasn't her name.
"EXXXXXXXXX...
It belonged to another.
Too late, she saw the impossible, realized he wasn't simply waiting for the iceburg to fall upon him. He'd leaped up to meet it-no, he was scaling it, dragging the holy blade behind him as he raced up to meet her, that gleaming, burning edge biting deep into the while the blade charged. Hissing, she raised a hand desperately thrusting a thick dome of ice between her and the blade as it rose-
...CALIBUUUUR!"
-and dropped.
Hard.
It was a very nice slash Esdeath thought as the golden line of wrath descended; blazed upward in a rising column of force that utterly vaporized her icy meteor and rendering it to so much water. That water boiled away into steam as the primordial forces behind the blade snarled forward, swallowing the frozen spire whole without the slightest resistance. The shockwave proved just as unstoppable, barreling into her frozen barrier, then her body, hurling her away like so much chaff before scythe.
A dizzying expanse of sky flashed before her vision followed by blackness, and when she came to, everything was swimming.
Her sight, her sense of sound, even her own legs, nothing would obey her.
"What are you, a monster?" Naruto's figure swung in and out of her sight as she desperately clung to consciousness. "I don't like to use this trick often so I held back a bit at the end, but still! You're lucky! If you hadn't defended at the least second there, you'd be dust. Still, you're bleeding a fair bit...
Esdeath twitched.
Furious, she focused all of her willpower into the air and urged a lance of ice at him!
CHOMP.
"...what?"
Naruto hadn't bothered to melt her attack. Instead, he'd simply caught it in his hand. As she looked on he brought it up to his mouth and...wait, was he really doing that? He was! To her great dismay, he sank his teeth into the frozen spear, chewed thoroughly, and swallowed. He inhaled deeply once more and reared his head back, taking another bite out of the frozen water. He continued doing so, slowly devouring the four foot spike with quiet intensity until nearly nothing remained, and he was left clutching bits of water.
"Maaaaaaan~!" he guffawed loudly. "That's cold!"
"I...you...what did you just do?!"
"Did you know?" he grinned, idly chewing, mouthing working around the larger chunks. "I've been called Berserker, but nothing's further from the truth. Y'see, I got that nickname from a rampage in the south. I was a shinobi. Got made into a teigu. I don't destroy them. I devour them. Eating your ice isn't quite the same, but its still very refreshing. Don't look at me like that, now!" he grinned. "How do you think I got all these crazy powers? Simple." With a flourish he cast the last of the frozen spear aside and struck up a pose reminiscent to that of a certain perverted sage, legs spread wide, hand thrust forth. "Listen well to this!" he declared, rolling his head! I consume Imperial Arms! I am the last of the Forty-Eight. The All Consuming Glutton! Uzumaki Naruto!"
Blue eyes gleamed red, a growl snaking through clenched teeth.
"And you taste fucking delicious."
Esdeath shuddered.
Well.
This was it, then.
She'd thrown all she had at him, and she couldn't even bring herself to move, now. Ignoring the fact that she'd already suffered the loss of an arm, she was fairly certain he'd blown off most of her left leg with that last attack, and one of her eyes was very much swollen shut. It was, to her great shame, an utter defeat. Standing wasn't even an option anymore. She felt drained, more so than she ever had been before. Steeling herself, she refused to flinch, her good eye staring stonily up at him. What a shame. Here she'd found someone worthy of standing beside her, and yet...
Gulping, she uttered the words she'd never thought to speak.
"Kill me." she muttered. "Just...get it over with."
Naruto was silent for a long moment.
Then, abruptly, he leaned forward.
"Chu~!"
"Mmmph?!"
Esdeath started slightly as a hand tilted her face upwards, firm, yet gentle. Then warm lips caged hers in a chaste kiss. To her surprise she felt strength and vitality rush back into her body. The aching sore that was her eye receded swiftly, allowing her to witness this strange miracle with both eyes wide. To watch as her own wounds closed, to see the twisted wreck of her leg slot back into place. To feel the harsh and clamoring ache in her head rapidly abated bloody red canyon between her shoulders slid shut. Yet for some reason, her arm did not return.
...what is...this?'
The loss of her limb was the furthest thing from Esdeath's mind as she watched those very same wounds appear on the tei-on Naruto. He sagged slightly, taking his lips from hers, coughing wetly. But only for a handful of seconds. As she looked on he straightened, his wounds slowly stitching themselves shut, as though he'd never accepted her injuries at all. When all was said and done she found herself feeling strangely refreshed, as though she had just finished a pleasant workout, and was just now cooling down
Speaking of which...!
A hand rose tentatively touching her lips.
"But...why...?"
Naruto gave her another beat of silence.
"I've struggled for a long time with survivin'." he said at last, turning his gaze towards the waning sun. "No matter what, you keep finding something to fight for. Be it people or a place, or even yourself; we humans get funny when it comes to rationalizing our thoughts. I'm not so far gone as to kill you in cold blood. Not yet. Death is easy. Its living that's hard."
"And what are you living for now?" Esdeath muttered.
"I'm fighting for an end." he replied readily.
"What kind of end?"
Azure eyes met cobalt.
"My own."
"Living just to die?" Esdeath frowned. "That's not a life."
Naruto clicked his teeth in annoyance.
"I don't want to hear that from someone who lives only to fight. So?" Jamming both hands in his pockets, he fixed her with a rueful glare. "Are you going to attack me again?" Esdeath watched him stiffen imperceptibly, his hand tense and ready to summon another weapon. Did she dare attack him again? Part of her flinched at the thought. She'd tasted death today and wasn't entirely sure she liked it. Her ice-cold confidence had been shaken for the first time in forever and despite the overwhelming desire she felt, a thorn of caution pricked her and held her back.
...no." she said at last, rising to her knees. "I won't."
"But you don't want to let me out of her sight."
Her head bobbed.
"Then join Night Raid." he offered her a hand. "Help me tear down the empire. You'll have plenty of fights. If you do that, this body is yours."
"You say that as if it isn't yours."
"It isn't." he replied readily. "If this were my REAL body I would've ground you to paste by now."
Esdeath froze.
"What?"
"Its just as I said." Naruto clicked his teeth impatiently. "As a Ninja I had WAY more power than this. Not as many techniques, though. So? What's your answer?" The entire forest seemed to hold its breath at that very moment, the fate of an entire world hanging on the balance between these two titans.
The silence was telling.
"Tch," He sighed, palming his face. "Do you really want me that badly? I'm really not as awesome as you think. And like I said, I'm not submissive-
"I don't mind."
...eh?"
"I said I don't mind." Esdeath repeated, placing her remaining hand in her lap. "As I see it, I have a handful of choices. The first is to return to the empire empty-handed. I have nothing there. The second is to take you by force, a path that we both know won't work. Then...there is the third. You're strong. Stronger than me now. I see that. If the only way to remain by your side is to join you and you absolutely refuse to be submissive or return with me to the Empire then I see only one way to satisfy both parties...
Naruto went pale.
"Oi, don't tell me you-
Her crazed smile conveyed it all.
"Please take good care of me, Master!"
"What?! I don't want a slaaaaaaaaaaack!"
That was all he managed before she tackled him.
A/N: A submissive Esdeath. Dear Lord this is going to be sheer MADNESS.
Next chapter will be all sorts of insanity! And a touch more serious than this one. Its a doozy, and the upcoming previews hint at it in a big way. I suppose you could say I've been inspired as of late, thanks to certain events, no?
So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review, Would You Kindly?
And enjoy the previews! If you get a Logan feeling from one of the previews its intentional =D
(Preview)
"Say hello to our new comrade!"
There was a deafening silence.
And then:
And then...
"HA?!"
A long, shuddering sigh fled from the ancient teigu.
Naruto frowned down at the child and she frowned back, this little girl of eight-years who had his face, and yet not his was like looking at a younger version of his patented Sexy Jutsu. Those were clearly his eyes, but the whiskers were paler. Her jaw had a bit of a hard, stubborn set to it, and the hair was all wrong, too. Someone had tied those smooth blonde locks back in a long ponytail behind her head, rather than the signature twin-tails which he knew so very well. She looked up at him, full of quiet innocence and curiosity and he felt something in him break. What was she? A clone? A copy? Some last futile experiment by Stylish before his death?
His fingers kept flexing, stiffening into claws at the sight of her.
"What is she?" he managed at last, turning his gaze.
The old man smiled.
"She's like you. Very much like you."
"I don't accept this."
Najenda started.
Naruto stood slowly, eyes bleeding black flames.
"I will not allow anyone to die!"
Before she could think to stop him, he thrust out a hand.
"Reject!"
R&R~!
