Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson & the Olympians or Naruto. Percy Jackson & the Olympians and Naruto are the property of Rick Riordan and Masashi Kishimoto respectively and are not my intellectual property. There is no financial gain made from this nor will any be sought. This is for entertainment purposes only.

-|Scars|-

A tall muscled teen draws a triangle in the earth then points East. "Thank you." She knows they don't understand her words but Shinobu hopes they understand her tone and her small bow. She had asked around, emphasizing the name of her friends, to a dozen people with no success but this one responded to Thalia's name. It was difficult looking for her friends, but this small lead makes it worth the effort.

Shinobu turns and hobbles with crutches under her shoulders. Her petrified feet makes the simple act of getting around tedious. They don't seem fragile but she doesn't want to risk breaking them by walking. The wooden crutches help but they bring attention to her impairment. The stares and the whispers remind her of her childhood. They don't speak in hateful tones or stare with harsh glares but eyes dart up to her horns, pause on her scars, and continue to her feet. Their pity tempts her to return to her tent and wear the cap and soft leather shoes her caretakers' left by her bedside.

The blonde shakes her head. She looks them in the eyes and stretches her lips into her widest grin. Gazes turn away red-faced but Shinobu laughs and regains their attention. They return her enthusiastic wave with small smiles and meek waves. Shinobu replaces her grin with a cheerful whistle and continues East with a figurative spring in her step.

She is once again clad in her orange shirt, denim pants, and the leather strap which holds her weapons. Half her daggers are gone although the hunters repaired her swords. Bandages no longer wrap her form, exposing the light scars on her skin.

They didn't start as scars but thin strips of stone embedded in the skin. Later, the strips thinned then crumbled away and left tiny wounds that healed overnight into light scars. A prominent one runs over her nose. It reminds her of Iruka though hers is nonuniform and starts from under the corner of her left eye, curves down, and ends over her right nostril. It's a novel experience as she never scarred. Was that thanks to Kyuubi or her Uzumaki body? She at least hopes they are cool and badass or intimidating.

Since they started out as stone strips that gave way to skin, it could mean that her stone feet may give way to flesh. She channels chakra to her feet a second time. The stone does not recede so raw chakra isn't the answer. Another day, another puzzle to solve. She hates puzzles. Why can't the problem be something she can punch?

She stops by the edge of the hunters' camp. Her nose takes a few whiffs. She is far enough from the camp for the other scents to not overpower Thalia's sharp smell, faintly reminiscent of chlorine. A thunderstorm's scent. Thalia also smells of leather but that doesn't permeate the air like ozone does. Shinobu's eyes scan the ground. Both her eyes and nose lead her to a trail. On the ground are two sets of boot prints. She is confident the pattern with skulls is that of Thalia's. The other is a hunter. Hunters she met in camp wore combat boots. She wonders if her other friends are part of the party.

The prints end over drier earth and the uneven terrain. Forested landscapes don't lend themselves to recording the passage of people's ear on the ground. Her training with Jiraiya was sporadic. She paid little attention to non-jutsu related lessons, so she is glad neither is a shinobi and neither covered their tracks.

She follows broken twigs, disturbed grass, overturned rocks and other signs of movement. The rough terrain slows her and soon she encounters one not accessible with her crutches. She ponders if she can afford to circle the area but decides against it. The area is large and she may lose the trail or spend a long time finding the trail again. Her chakra flows over her legs and reinforces her feet so they do not crack under her weight. She then carries her crutches as she walks over large, exposed roots. Once she is on easier ground she returns to her crutches and stops the chakra flow.

It takes less than a minute for her to encounter another obstacle. The cliff of earth and rock has signs of climbing. The rope hanging tied to a tree is the most obvious clue. She can climb with or without the rope. If she wants, she can leap the small wall with chakra. Instead, she moves around it and tries to find the trail again. She finds where the cliff is lowest and makes her way over it. The rope is a good enough marker that spots it and returns to it will little effort.

She comes to a stop at a small clearing. It takes a second before it clicks in her head. This is the hunters' camp's previous site. This is where the large black dogs attacked. Her eyes gaze over the swamp and note small details. Pieces of torn silver cloth can be seen and the trees have the marks of weapons on them. At a distance, she can spot arrows embedded in earth and wood. She pokes the swamp she created and notes how easy she pulls her crutch out. The swamp is not as adhesive as it should be and she guesses its depth to be shallow.

The swamp's presence results in damp, soft earth around it. Boot prints here are pronounced and easy to follow.

She shuffles on when a hand clamps on her shoulder. Shinobu swings her right crutch backward, striking their shin. The hand withdraws from shock and pain. She turns to face her attacker to see a hunter hopping on one leg and two arms raised in a placating gesture.

Shinobu's resist the urge to palm her face. She should have known they would follow her. These hunters have shown great kindness to her and they are not the type to let a disabled girl wonder the woods by herself.

The three silver clad teens talk among themselves for half a minute, gesturing to her and the small swamp in occasion. The tallest of the three walks past Shinobu and gestures for her to follow. She isn't directing Shinobu back to their camp but to the same direction the trail leads so she follows. The remaining two hunters move in step behind Shinobu. Together the three form a triangular perimeter around the disabled blonde. They walk around the swamp and stop in front of what looks like an entrance to an underground structure. The rectangular, artificial stone doorway stood out against its natural backdrop. Etched on top is a large triangle. Shinobu guesses her friends ventured forth through here.

A hand drops on her shoulder. She looks up to her guide's face. The tall teen's brows furrow with concern and her lips thin to a grim frown. Shinobu understands. Wherever this doorway leads to is dangerous and her friends left her in the care of the hunters for her own sake. She can't fight and will hinder her friends' mission. Or so they think.

In a flash, Shinobu slams her forehead into the stomach of the teen to her right. She is too short to reach the skull. Shinobu channels chakra to reinforce her feet, wary of breaking them with her body's weight and the stress of her movements. The two hunters behind her move to grab her from behind. She drops at the last moment, spins, and with her crutches. She sweeps the teen she headbutted to the ground. The tallest falls to the side grasping her right leg. The third leaps away in time to avoid her attack. In haste, she drops her crutches and rushes the girl. Shinobu throws a chakra enforced punch which the girl blocks. The guard breaks to her strength, and, with a small hop, she reaches the girl by the hair and pulls her face into her knee.

Then she waits.

She waits until two are back on their feet. They move towards her, their movements slow and wary. She does not attack.

Shinobu surprises and confuses the three with a bow to the waist. she keeps her deep bow for ten seconds. When she ends her bow, she looks them in the eyes. She needs no words.

Shinobu has a handicap, but she is not helpless. She is more capable than most able-bodied demigods in defending herself. If they will not stop them, they should not stop her.

The other protests, but the tallest raises her palm to halt her companions tirade. She gives Shinobu a long, hard look then nods. The tall teen moves to their unconscious comrade. The other hesitates but follows her lead. Together they perform a two-man fore-and-aft carry.

Before they disappear into the trees, Shinobu shouts and waves her thanks and her goodbyes to them.

When she is sure she is no longer in their sights, she collapses on the floor. She lays in the cool grass, her breath harsh and heavy. She spent too much chakra while she is still recovering. It takes half a minute to catch her breath.

She heaves herself up and performs a mental check on her person and makes sure her stunt didn't stress bone nor strained muscle. For a second she questions her decision. What she's doing is stupid, and she knows that.

The imposing stone doorway looms over her. Her head turns to the forest. One last look before she ventures into the unknown. She inches forward until her crutches tap against the stone floor. and her form melds into the darkness.

The sound of stone against stone echo in the forest as a door rises from the floor and slams the entrance shut.

-|Maze|-

Shinobu's in a maze.

The short, disabled blonde restrains herself from punching the dull red of the vine decorated brick walls surrounding her. She instead focuses on shuffling forward although her knuckles whiten around her crutches' handles. Her stone feet's clacking against the tiled earth echoes in the narrow hallway. Electric lamps flicker overhead, illuminating a faint outline of smoke. Her nose wrinkles at the pungent smokey aroma. The sound of stone grinding against stone grate at the edge of her hearing.

She continues forward with a grimace. The maze shifts. Fantastic.

She stops at a split. The path ahead of her leads to older architecture. The path to her right has better lighting fixtures and less dilapidated walls. She takes a deep whiff, but the incense overpowers the smell of ozone. The wall's earthy tang also muddies the air. She resists the urge to sneeze and instead releases a short snort. Her eyes scan both paths and glimpses small gashes on the right path's walls. She moves closer to inspect them and sees small burns on the vines and moss along the shallow marks. Her lips edge out a smile as she continues to the right.

Thalia and her companions didn't leave as much of a mark on the hard walls and floor compared to the soft earth of the forest. Shinobu is glad for any sign of her friends although she hopes the battle they had here hadn't hurt one of them. The wall lacks any trace of blood. These creatures, monsters, leave no trace when they die but she is certain humans in this world will leave a corpse. She'll consider this good news for now.

It takes less than a few steps for the path to splits in two. This time the correct choice is obvious. The path to her right shows a dead-end. She takes the path straight ahead. It does not diverge for minutes and instead twists left and right every twelfth step. When she reaches a crossroad, the walls are no longer brick. Concrete engraved with depictions of men and monsters surrounds her. False windows overhead cast multi-colored light to the floor. A broken one reveals light bulbs behind the glass mimicking daylight.

She frowns as she observes her choices. Each is identical to each other. No marks mar the walls or floor to indicate a battle. She takes a deep breath and focuses on her nose. Thalia's scent is faint but there is no incense here to overpower it. She takes ten steps in each direction and notes the change in the scent's strength. The odor forward does not weaken.

When she reaches a corner she spots glass on the floor and looks up. Another broken, stained glass, fake window but behind it is a different bulb. Her eyes narrow and she backtracks to the crossroad. She tosses her a dagger to the glass above each direction. As she retrieves her blades, she contemplates her discovery. Her earlier observation was incorrect. The paths are not identical. Forward has the brightest, newest bulbs.

A minute later the path forks once again. This time, she takes only a brief glance at her choices before going left. After a corner, a broken arrow on the floor confirms her suspicion. Her friends moved towards the newer parts of the maze.

Hours pass as Shinobu follows the logic of her recent discovery. It's not perfect. She's hit a dead-end twice but nothing too severe. Right now her main concern is her lack of foresight to bring provisions on her journey. Her stomach is more than vocal about its complaints. Though when she started she didn't think she'd be traveling underground. In the forest, she can hunt. In the city, she can steal. Underground in this maze, she is uncertain. She half wishes for a monster attack so she can test if they dissolve into dust when eaten. She suspects they would but it can't hurt to try.

Shinobu turns another corner when a spearhead greets her. In reflex, her hand uses her right crutch to parry the blade away. Before she can counter with her right her mind registers a face and stops. "Shinobu?" Thalia's incredulous expression matches her tone. Behind the leather-clad girl are a hunter and an arm sticking out from behind her. Shinobu squints trying to recognize the familiar body part. Thalia opens her mouth to berate the blonde until her mind reminds her of the act's futility. The tall brunet with dark brown eyes and copper-colored skin, however, is unaware of the language barrier. She adjusts the silver circlet on her head and scolds the shortest girl. Her index finger points to Shinobu before outright jabbing at her shoulder.

The blonde just stares at the hunter with a neutral expression. She understands the tall hunter is chewing her out but she can't bring herself to act chastised. Her left crutch drops to the ground as she gives the teen a smile and one-armed hug. She then pats the stunned girl's head before retrieving her crutch from the ground. The concern is sweet but unneeded.

Before the hunter can renew her tirade Thalia pulls her aside to mention Shinobu's inability to understand English. Unsatisfied, the hunter instead unleashes her verbal lashing to Thalia.

With the attention directed away from Shinobu, the blonde directs her own attention to the disembodied arm in the sling behind the hunter next to a quiver of arrows. She gives a short glance at the two girls and notes Thalia is now arguing with the archer. Neither notices her movements. Shinobu is about to prod the arm with her finger when it moves. The arm twists so that its open palm faces her. In the palm's center, a circle of skin opens and reveals a tiny glass lens. "Ah, so it is you."

Shinobu eyes widen though she resists the reflex to jump back or attack. "Ivy?"