When The Demons Wake
Hey! Sorry for the wait, I guess with school starting again I lost track of time, lol. My timetable for this year had been mixed up so much I couldn't be bothered to work in any of my classes, so I just went on the computer and read stories here on fanfiction, either that or look at art on DeviantArt. Anywho, thanks for the reviews and stuff, 2 more for the next chapter please.
A.N. Warning - This chapter contains mild violence. Italics means that's someone's thoughts or emphasis.
Enjoy!
Laughter rang out across the vast expanse of rock, echoing off the solid boulders and into the air. They stood in a mini desert of rubble, as that what it was: rubble. It was as if someone had come along, knocked down a mountain and dumped all the remains on the land where it obviously shouldn't be. Behind them, the tree line stopped abruptly. It wasn't just a straight line either, it waved back and forth, jagging out and points and folding back in on itself. On the edges of the line, some trees had been stripped of their leaves, or were torn in two, branches split and cracked. The ground was left so unequal, even a trained mountain climber would be exhausted by the time the reached the other side, where the mountains lay and hid the village of their destination.
"Just give it up, Sasuke, you got us lost, didn't you?" Naruto grinned. Zayn was currently slung over his hip, his small arms resting on the blonde's muscled shoulders, a small smile gracing his young features. Sasuke stood a few feet in front of them, the map in his hands and his forehead burrowed in concentration as he studied the wrinkled paper intently. They had leaped out to the sudden landscape of rock, coming to an unexpected halt as they studied the scene before them; where trees and greenery should be, was only stone.
The Uchiha grunted and folded the map, slipping it into his jacket before throwing a smirk at the blond. "I'm not lost. We're exactly where we should be."
Naruto huffed gave a snort. "Then what the hell happened to the trees? That map isn't even a year old, not even half of that. Someone couldn't have waltzed up here and rip them out of the ground in that time, let alone tear up the ground too."
Sasuke turned back to look at the rock that surrounded them, searching with squinted eyes. He spotted something sticking out of the ground and immediately sprung over to it, startling the others with his sudden movement. Naruto called after him before hiking Zayn higher onto his hip and following, muttering under his breath. It had taken them five days to reach the border of the Earth country. Zayn had slowed them considerably, but the two shinobi took turns to carry him on their backs across large distances, much to Sasuke's dislike. The white haired boy was quiet unless Naruto started playing with him, making up games and things to do to pass the time. Being dragged over miles of land could be very boring. But to Sasuke's dissatisfaction, the blonde seemed even more louder and hyper than usual, the younger boy having brought out his childlike side.
Zayn had bonded strongly with Naruto, and was always at his side. Sasuke saw him as too clingy, while Naruto passed it off as the boy feeling scared and wanting comfort. Sasuke saw that as a problem, as he could no longer sneak a kiss from the blonde when he felt like it, the boy always near by. He was frustrated that he couldn't do anything with his lover. Surely the boy must have noticed Sasuke and Naruto were closer than simple friends due to the fact Naruto kept hugging him and pleading him to make more food, or snuggling up to him to get something else he wanted. Not that the Uchiha minded, but it was Naruto who had suggested they keep their activities low. A thought had struck him that the blonde might be doing these small things to ease Zayn into the fact they were lovers, but then realised Naruto probably couldn't have come up with a plan like that.
Sasuke came to a stop over a particularly large slab of rock, looking down through the gaps between it and other boulders. He noticed what he had seen before poking out of the ground were in fact trees. He looked up and searched the area, spotting similar occurences at various places.
"I don't think someone chopped the trees down then dug up the earth; it's more like they flipped it over entirely. The trees are buried beneath the rock, yet the stone edges are so smooth and straight. Whatever did this is powerful, not even one of my jutsu can cut the stone this cleanly," Sasuke admitted.
Naruto listened to the raven's explanation, nodding when he finished. "I definitely think we're in the right area, the Jinchuuriki for the Seven Tails must be close, only the demon Kaku, and maybe Houkou, could do this."
Sasuke turned to him with an intrigued smirk. "Let's go get him then."
"Lead the way, teme," Naruto laughed with a flourish of his arm.
The two shinobi jumped from rock to rock, only their thoroughly trained bodies being able to keep them balanced and upright. One falter in step could send them falling, and the sharp edges of stone around them could do some damage if not careful. Naruto held onto Zayn with one arm securely wrapped around his small frame, the boy holding on to his shirt in fists. With their enhanced speed and reflexes, they closed in on the mountains in the distance in surprisingly short time. After almost twenty minutes, the village they were aiming for came into view. The mountain it was built up against served as a wall as well as natural protection. Small buildings lined the streets in a twisting style, a stone wall wrapping around them, almost hiding them from sight. Naruto smiled when he saw the village, hoping this time they could spend the night in a hotel instead of a hard, uneven mud floor. He was dying to have a bath and be clean, only having a brief wash at a small river that was only a few inches deep. He wanted a well prepared, hot meal instead of canned and cold food. Of course he had been in situations like this before on other missions, but this time they had Zayn with them. He couldn't deprived the boy of the nutrients he needed to grow, now could he?
Naruto was literally shaken from his thoughts when the attack occurred. It was sudden, unexpected and somewhat exciting. His gaze shot around, looking for men but only saw his lover. It was then that he remembered the rumours of this village.
'Whoever tried to bombard the village was consumed by the earth itself.'
It seemed the rumours were true.
The ground beneath them was shaking violently, many of the rocks splitting in two with a loud crack. Many times Naruto almost lost his footing, only to gain it back at the last second. He was unaccustomed to the extra weight he carried, and it was throwing his balance off. There was a loud booming noise and the ground before them started to rise, as if a giant snake was racing towards them just underneath the surface. Shards of stone flew off in every direction as the tunnel-like attack approached. Naruto tightened his hold on Zayn, putting a hand over his head and drawing him to his chest protectively. He shot chakra to his feet and leaped into the air, rolling and turning to get out of the path of the oncoming assault, seeing Sasuke do the same. What surprised him then was that the attack followed them, being guided by some unseen force. The blonde heard Sasuke swear and the raven turned to face him, only for Naruto to see his red eyes widen a fraction.
"Behind you!"
Naruto didn't even turn. Trusting his lover's remark, the blonde launched himself to his right, towards Sasuke. He heard a sickening crunch as a second tunnel collided with the first. The rock pushed up against each other with alarming force, shredding each other before settling into dust. The scene around them stilled eerily, both shinobi tensed for another attack. Zayn was clinging to Naruto's shirt for dear life. Although he had been carried at high speeds for days, in close combat everything seemed faster, and the effect of Naruto's nimble actions were making him queasy.
"Where the hell is it coming from?" Naruto cursed, his gaze shifting from one spot to the next, never staying in one place for too long. His back was against Sasuke's, feeling his movements and tense stance. Not only was he annoyed that they couldn't see their attacker, he felt the rocks beneath his feet humming with energy as if they were alive. It was unnerving.
The Uchiha didn't have a chance to reply when the sun itself was suddenly blacked out. Darkness consumed them as four walls of pure, thick rock shot up into the air, surrounding them and trapping them in a tight cage. Thunder rolled about them as the ground shook with anger. The raven quickly ran through hand signals and held out his arm, palm outwards while his other hand supported his wrist. Static electricity crackled in the air and white-blue light filled their space as Sasuke prepared his chidori. The low buzz it created bounced back and forth in their confined space, making the attack seem larger than it actually was. Instantly, Naruto saw the rock was too strong and thick for even Sasuke to break through, not mentioning the damage the rebounding shards could do to them. With a quick motion, Naruto grabbed the back of the Uchiha's shirt and kept him from moving.
"It's too dangerous!" he shouted over the constant rumbling, the rock walls still growing around them.
Naruto saw the anger in Sasuke's eyes but the man slowly nodded, noting the look on his lover's face and his jutsu fading away as darkness consuming them again. The tiny thread of light that was at the top of the wall seemed to shrink, and Naruto felt a sense of dread wash over him. The walls were closing in on them. The rock sealed itself together before the newly formed ceiling rushed down at them. He heard Zayn whimper in his arms and saw Sasuke start another jutsu. But he knew the rock was too fast for them. There was only one thing they could do.
Naruto grabbed Sasuke a second time and pushed him to his knees. The blonde followed suit behind him, keeping a hold of both Zayn and the raven as he gathered his chakra. Sensing the build up, Sasuke let his second jutsu drop and let his head fall down, his eyes sliding shut. Not everyday you're faced with being buried alive in moving rock. Naruto felt his power fluctuate before it blasted out in waves. The sound was almost deafening when his shield of dark purple chakra collided with the oncoming rock, forming a bubble around their party. The shield was pushed back and shrunk before Naruto found a balance that kept the rock from crushing them. Grinding echoed around them in the darkness, accompanied with their own heavy breathing. Even if he had stopped the attack, Naruto felt the rock continue to push against his shield, and only by constantly supplying it with more chakra would it stand any hope of standing.
The air around them quietened and Naruto let out an explosive breath. "Damn that was close," he muttered. Slowly, he let Zayn slide to the floor to stand on his own feet, his arm sore from holding him while he was crouching. Sasuke shuffled round on his knees until he faced the other two.
"You could say that again. I could barely keep up with the earth's movements," he said quietly, studying the shield around them. He could only just make out the features of the other two people in the dark, relying more or his other senses to tell where they were. He knew they were in arms reach as the shield surrounding them was small, the reason why he had to stay crouched.
"Naruto-kun, we're gonna get out right? I don't like small spaces," Zayn asked in a hushed voice, but it wavered slightly as his grip on Naruto's shirt tightened again.
The blonde let out a reassuring laugh. "Of course we are. A bunch of rock isn't gonna stop me."
Not paying attention to their conversation, Sasuke continued to watch the shield, a frown forming on his features. He glanced to Naruto and saw that the man was more out of breath than he should be. He heard the crunching of stone around them and his eyes narrowed in suspicion and worry.
"Naruto, you're using too much chakra. You'll drain yourself out in that form," Sasuke stated cautiously, ignoring Zayn's gasp.
The blonde nodded in the dark, then realised the others couldn't see. "I know, I'm just stalling to figure out a way to stay safe from a rebound attack once we break free. We could get hit the moment we surface if we're not careful."
Sasuke grunted in displeasure, knowing if his lover put too much pressure on his normal chakra levels within the sealed form, they could break. "Just make sure you don't go over the limit. It would be very bad if you transformed in this situation."
Naruto chuckled. "You think?"
Sasuke stared at where he believed Naruto's face was, his concern hidden by the shadows. With the blonde using this much chakra for a shield, Sasuke realised their attacker was very strong. To put such pressure on the blonde showed alone the vastness of the attacker's own chakra. He was suddenly aware that he himself was breathing more heavily than normal. Sudden realisation hit him. He swore under his breath, and trying not to worry the others too much, spoke quietly.
"You might want to hurry up about that escape plan, Naruto."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. I won't go past the limit," his lover replied.
"That's not what I mean. We have another problem."
"What is it?"
"Dobe, we're running out of oxygen," Sasuke informed them, taking the blonde's silence as a sign he understood their serious position.
Thanks for reading and please review, thanks!
KCT
